Trial and Error
by Sangelide
Summary: Harsh childhoods usually produce jaded souls, but Naruto seems more naive than most. Yet, looks can be decieving. See the world through the eyes of a child with the world set against him.
1. Chapter One

CHAPTER ONE

There was one thing Naruto Uzumaki had always wanted in life: a family. He craved for a cheerful mother that would cook dinner each night and wipe off a speck of imaginary dirt with spit. He wanted a dad that would pat him on the back and tell him how proud he was of his son. He wondered what it would be like to have an older brother to look out for him, or maybe he could have a little sibling that he could watch over himself.

But he didn't. All he had were a few ninjas that would come by his little apartment once a week. They would look around to make sure everything was clean, peek in his cupboards to check the food supply, and make sure he was healthy. It wasn't much.

Most of the times he only knew they had come and gone because there were extra ramen cups on the table, or a new set of clothes on the bed, and sometimes a little note on his door stating he hadn't done all his chores. When Naruto did see one, all he or she did was look at him, as if they wanted to be anywhere but there. If he tried to talk to a ninja, they would just leave faster than if he just watched them.

What he didn't know was that they watched him as well. He only found out after he was tired of all the looks and whispers he received from the villagers. He was tired of crying and yelling at them to stop. It hadn't made any difference.

The villagers only ignored him and continued to talk about him when they thought he couldn't hear them, or glare from across the street. He had tried running away a few times, but the ninjas always found him and brought him back. When he thought about it, there wasn't anywhere to run to anyway.

The only kids he had ever hung out with were a few years older than him. At first they only let him tag along once or twice a month but he learned more from them than he did anywhere else.

The older kids were a group of four boys led by a kid named Mendo. Mendo liked Naruto, but the blonde boy couldn't join their group. He attracted too much attention when he hung out with them. And while the brunette leader didn't really care what the adults thought, he didn't like the extra lectures they got when he did let Naruto tag along. Still, the boys taught him the ropes of standing up for himself.

"Don't take shit from no one. They don't got nothing to do with you. You make sure they know you won't take that kind of crap. Got it?" Naruto listened to everything Mendo said. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to work as well for him as it did for the older boy.

Mendo started teaching him a few tricks on how to fight and defend himself when the older boy caught Naruto yelling at a shopkeeper. The grocer had not let him buy a candy bar he had the money for. Instead of letting him buy the candy, the shopkeeper roughed him up a bit.

That had been enough for the gang-leader to give Naruto a bit more than advice. Twice a week he snuck out to show Naruto the way to street fight. Sometimes Kutomi came along to help out. Since his father was a ninja, Kutomi knew a few things about basic taijutsu and chakra. The black-haired boy didn't want to be a ninja, but the training he received as a kid was useful in a fight. Between the two boys, Naruto learned the best way to fight was dirty and unpredictably.

When the two other boys learned about the private lessons Mendo and Kuta were giving the blonde, they decided to pitch in their own specialties. Taiko was a tall skinny kid that lived at the same orphanage Naruto used to be at. He was a pickpocket by trade and knew a bit about lock picking as well. The tall brunette had claimed it was his duty to pass on his skills to the younger generation.

Shinzo, the prankster of the group, decided that if Naruto gained the slight of hand Taiko had, he should put it to good use. "Besides," he said. "Us blondes have to stick together!" He taught the kid everything he knew about pranks and traps. By the time he was seven, Naruto could sneak in and out of someone's house and leave a prank to remember him by.

But the longer he hung out with the boys, the more the four got in trouble. Naruto decided to go solo and while the boys said he was still welcomed to stop by, the blonde vowed not to go near the group until the villagers settled down. He also made a vow to prank the most vocal villagers until they stopped being so rude.

But the first time he tried a prank without the boys, he hit a little snag. Naruto was standing on a stack of crates, attempting to balance a small bucket of river mud on the edge of a door when the bucket disappeared. After a moment of confusion, the blonde looked around and spotted his bucket a few feet away in the hands of a ninja, dressed like the ones that checked up on him.

"You can't do that."

That knocked the blonde out of his confusion. "Since when? I've pulled one on Sumisu-bastard a few months back. Did I scare the stupid grocer enough to hire a ninja?" The ninja didn't answer Naruto's taunting. He just kept the bucket and disappeared. Naruto was SO mad.

The next day he tried again, but a different ninja stopped him. Again, the ninja was dressed in the same navy blue uniform with green pocket vest. The day after Naruto tried it in the morning when Sumisu Grocery would open in the morning, but he was stopped by yet another ninja.

Naruto tried a different prank on a different person at a different time and was stopped again. He tried to prank someone by skipping school and was still caught before he could do anything. To the small seven-year-old's mind, the only explanation was that ninjas were following him everywhere.

He started looking for them. There were glimpses of navy blue and green every now and then in the corner of his eye. That was enough proof for the blonde to believe his paranoid theory. But if the ninja wanted to follow Naruto Uzumaki, he wasn't going to make it easy for them.

The first time he tried ditching them it was a quick turn in a crowded street. He used an old blanket he found in the alley to cover his bright blonde hair. It worked. He saw a ninja in uniform jump to a rooftop and start looking around. When the ninja moved off, Naruto ran in the opposite direction. He got Sumisu with the mud bucket without anyone stopping him.

But it didn't work a second time. It became a game to Naruto. How many times could he dodge them? How many pranks could he play before they found him again? He didn't have anything to do but school, and that was boring as hell. Concentrating on successful ninja dodging became the highlight of his day.

The ninjas became better at hiding. It only took a week before he couldn't see them at all. But he started to get the feeling he was being watched and learned to trust it. Whenever he felt it and tried a prank, the ninja were there to stop it. When Naruto couldn't feel anything, he got away with whatever he tried to pull.

When the ninja's did catch him he figured out why he couldn't see them. They weren't in uniform anymore. They didn't even have a forehead protector on! He started watching for people in the streets that might be ninjas. Some 'villagers' seemed to be more alert, even with their heads buried in a newspaper or when picking out vegetables from a stand. There were other people that seemed to glide when they walked down the street. He tested it out a few times and sure enough, the ones who stopped him were one of the people he picked out.

It was the most fun Naruto ever had. Every time he thought he had it down, the ninjas would do something new. He started watching the ninja trainees every now and then instead of playing a prank when he dodged the ninjas. The Academy teachers didn't like him watching so he learned to hide in the bushes. Even then, if he went too close, they seemed to know where he was.

'_Maybe they can sense me watching like I can sense the ninja watchers,'_ Naruto thought. Still, he needed to watch the trainees so he could figure out what the ninjas might do next. He figured to beat a ninja he would have to be a ninja. By simple trail and error he found out at what distance the teachers could sense him and where they couldn't.

He learned how they used chakra to jump long distances, and how if you bounced off the side of buildings while running a ninja could turn corners quicker. With this information, Naruto began out running his ninja watchers as well as being able to hide from them.

But for every trick Naruto learned, the ninjas became harder and harder to beat. When the ninjas started following him in groups of two, Naruto got a little worried. It became impossible to get away from them and cutting school was making the teachers meaner than usual. After an entire week of having two watchers and not being able to ditch them, Naruto decided just watching ninja trainees wouldn't be enough.

He had never ditched the ninja watchers at night, so he waited for a good hour of pretending to sleep before he made his move. Using extra clothes he stuffed his bed to look like he was still sleeping and snuck out the bathroom winder. He was really small, and in another year or two he might not fit though it. Hopefully, the ninjas wouldn't even think about him using it. Especially since he was two-stories up.

He reached the Academy with no troubles by wearing dark clothes and using the skills Taiko taught him about sneaking around. He unlocked a window on the second floor and found the library after exploring the place. Taiko had given him an old lock picking set that was missing only a few tools. Using that he got through the locked library and started looking through the scrolls and books inside.

Most of it was on boring history, tactics and strategy. When he found the section on chakra he decided he hit the jackpot. There were a few scrolls that mentioned higher ranked ninja sensing chakra and being able to hide their own. None ever mentioned how, just that it was a high-Chuunin level skill to suppress chakra to the point no one could sense it.

Naruto didn't know what that meant, but realized that if he wanted to ditch the ninjas, he would have to learn how to do it. He read everything he could find on chakra in three days. One book showed a bunch of hand signals called 'seals' that were suppose to help control chakra to use in techniques called 'jutsus'. He memorized the list and used the hour he had to pretend sleeping to practice them.

The only jutsus the library had were the basics: bushin, kawamari, and henge. Kawamari replaced the user with a nearby object to help ninjas escape. He could see a few ways he could use that to dodge ninjas, but they'd find out he knew how do use ninjutsu the first time he tried it. After the way the Academy teachers reacted to him, Naruto didn't want to see what they'd do to him if they realized he knew ninja skills.

The bushin was the ability to create a look-a-like illusion. He could use that to make a ninja go one way while he went the other. But the scroll claimed that there was a limited range of how far the bushin could go depending upon the strength of the user. Naruto had never thought of himself as very strong and didn't think he could make the bushin go to far.

The henge, however, would be a very useful skill. Henge allowed the use to look like another person. To use it, Naruto would need to study the person he wanted to look like so he could see the image in his mind to the last detail. The blonde figured he could make up a while new person, someone no one would ever suspect being Naruto Uzumaki.

He found a good spot in the woods to train in henge. A lot of the books and scrolls mentioned that the amount of chakra a ninja had could be increased by the amount a ninja practiced and how well exercised their body was. Naruto wanted to increase the amount of chakra he held so he could eventually use bushin. He would start out with a lot of kicking, punching, sit-ups, push-ups and the few simple kata Kutomi had taught him. Then he'd spend the rest of the night working on henge.

During the day he'd attempt to suppress his chakra. He knew how to feel chakra, and it didn't take much effort. Naruto only had to close his eyes and think about it. His chakra always seemed to have an extra flare to it. The other ninjas he sensed always seemed dull compared to his, but Naruto shrugged it off. After all, shouldn't he be able to feel his own energy better than someone else's.

When he ran from the ninjas after school, he'd get far enough away from them to hide and then try something he'd hope would work. Usually they'd catch up and be able to spot him right way. He figured they could sense his chakra and if what he'd try worked, they'd pass him by. If not, they'd still find him.

Since he knew that the feeling of someone watching him was actually him sensing someone's chakra he started concentrating on that. Soon he learned how to sense his ninja watchers coming from a few blocks away instead of just when they found him. Unfortunately he began to feel other people as well.

It confused him to feel so many people around instead of just sensing someone watching. Then he noticed the difference. The villagers seemed to feel fuzzy, while the ninjas were solid and clear. It was like feeling safe around a lazy cat, lying in the sun compared to feeling your hackles rise when a house cat started hissing at you. After a week or so Naruto decided it was a good thing. It made it easier to tell a disguised ninja from a villager, and he could tell if a house was empty just by trying to sense people in it.

Suppressing chakra was harder than refining his senses. He tired a bunch of ideas: gathering his chakra and then imagining he was invisible, or taking his chakra and spreading it out and around him like a faint mist rather than a human body. None of them worked. Each time an idea failed, he came out of hiding and acted like he thought he got away. Sometimes he'd stroll around the village before trying to run again and sometimes he'd try a prank that would be stopped.

It took forever and since he wasn't having any success at doing henge, Naruto was about to give up. It had been an entire month since sneaking into the library and he hadn't been able to dodge his ninja watchers once. The only things he gained was the ability to sense who was around him and being able to sleep in class and still keep half his attention on the lesson. He may not remember everything that was said, but he seemed to get the more important things the teacher said despite dozing off.

He was about to give up when he had a break through on chakra suppression. By concentrating all his chakra into a small ball in his stomach and squeezing it as small as it would go, his ninjas would pass him by. It made his head and stomach hurt for a long while after.

But after a few dozen times, his headaches went away, and the stomachache began to be more irritating than painful. It felt as though he had swallowed a mall bird or squirrel and it was running around, bouncing off the walls of his stomach like crazy. It was a weird feeling, but not too difficult to ignore. He played a lot of pranks that week to make up for lost time.

Bolstered by the success in chakra suppression, it only took another week for Naruto to do henge. The jutsu had been harder than he thought. The first step was to gather chakra with a basic hand seal and then push it outside his body to surround him completely. That had only taken a week or so to get down. Unfortunately, he forgot what exactly the next step was. Just that it was using that layer of chakra to take on the form you were thinking of. Not wanting to risk being caught at the Academy again, Naruto just tried to do it on his own.

When he learned how to suppress chakra he decided he might have memorized the first step wrong. Instead of gathering the chakra over his skin, Naruto gathered it just under his skin. He had tried to force his chakra to take the shape of what he wanted it to look like over his skin as if it were a costume. After he started gathering his chakra under his skin, he tried to force his body to go with his chakra to actually take the form of his idea instead of just looking like it.

The first time he tried it his entire body burned. But it was more of a reaction than he had all month so he kept with it. A week later he found out it that burning was a lot easier to take than the actual henge. He passed out the first time he transformed. When he woke and looked at his reflection he saw a beautiful blonde woman in pigtails instead of as small blue-eyed boy. His clothes were stretched tight and made it hard to breath, but he had done it. Naruto had used henge.

He wanted to shout for joy and jump up and down and go tell everyone he ran across. At the last moment he remembered that he was doing this in secret. By thinking of all the fun this skill would give him, he held himself back. He could just see one of his ninja watchers coming up and asking him, "Excuse me Miss, have you seen a young boy about this high with blond hair?" It would be great!

But he wasn't going to try it until he had it down pat. Passing out every time he tried to henge wasn't going to work. And he needed to find a way to get rid of his scars on his cheeks. He had pictured his face without them, but there they were. Plus it really hurt to stay like this. His entire body felt like it had run a marathon and his skin felt as though a thousand needles were sticking out of him. He stood back up and decided to change back.

He got scared when he couldn't. He felt for his chakra and it wasn't molded into this shape. It felt like he really was a woman! He tried to do henge no jutsu again, but transform into his original shape instead of this one. Yet this time he couldn't push his skin outwards, he had to pull it inwards and shrink back to his old self.

Time after time, Naruto tried. Nothing seemed to work. Several times during the day he sensed ninjas passing him by. Even if they weren't ninjas out looking for him, Naruto's panic increased each time one passed. He was suppose to be at school right now. Even when he skipped he always showed up in the morning. It was like saying, "Hey everyone, I'm still alive!"

While he didn't mind missing class, the ninjas would realize he hadn't gone and if they went inside his apartment to check on him… _'Well, I guess I won't be going out at night and practicing for a long while.'_

By the time night fell again, Naruto had forgotten his worry about not being able to practice and was beginning to wonder if he'd always be a girl. The only thing stopping him from stopping a ninja and asking for help was the fact that they probably wouldn't help him anyway. The only time ninjas ever spoke to him was when they were telling him not to do something or to go away.

He fell asleep worrying about living the rest of his life as a girl. When he woke up he felt a little stronger and his body wasn't hurting nearly as much. With a loud sight the blonde started trying again. It was near morning when he succeeded. He had kept trying to pull his chakra into himself, like he had pushed out to henge the first time. But each time he tried, he only managed to suppress his chakra.

His success had come when he had formed his chakra underneath his skin and then waited for a moment as he tried to come up with a different idea. After a few moments the chakra had started to move on its own. He had control of it, but he wasn't really concentrating on keeping it a certain shape anymore. It pulled his skin in on its own as it pooled into his stomach and back out: like water being poured into a bowl and splashing on the sides.

It felt really weired and hurt like hell, but he clenched his teeth, closed his eyes and let it go. It seemed to be doing SOMETHING and that was better than before. When his chakra stopped moving and the worst of the pain had left, Naruto opened his eyes again. The world had shrunk. He looked in the stream next to him and saw a small kid with spiky blond hair and bright blue eyes.

If Naruto had more energy he would have celebrated. As it was, his entire body hurt and it was a struggle just to move. All he wanted was his bed and who cared what the ninjas thought. He started back to his apartment, focusing on putting one foot in front of the other. He neither saw nor felt the ninja he ran into as he was nearing the boundaries of the forest grounds. All he knew was that he bounced off of something and landed on the ground with a thump.

When he looked up and saw a man in black with a green vest standing over him, he had to think for a minute before realizing what he was. _'A ninja… Their important… for some reason… what was it again…'_ Naruto's thoughts trailed off as he let sleep claim him.

-Scene Break-

Naruto woke up in a small white room. It smelled of something weird that tingled his nose. There was a needle stuck in his arm and he pulled it out, wrinkling his nose at the small amount of blood that pooled in his armpit. He pushed his hand against it to make it stop as he shifted off the bed and tried to stand.

His knees wobbled and he was forced to let go of his arm to steady himself. After a moment, his legs stopped moving on their own and he felt well enough to try and walk. Two steps were all it took to feel the draft on his backside. He was wearing a funny looking dress that seemed to tie in the back and leave a gap. He looked around the room for his real clothes.

There were three doors. One had a window on it that looked in on a hallway with another door across the way. The second was cracked open enough to see a bathroom on the other side. He headed for the last door, figuring it was a closet. Sure enough his clothes were folded neatly on one of the shelves, still covered in dirt and with a few holes in them.

He ignored the dirt and stripped out of the dress and pulled on his real clothes. Feeling a whole lot better with that done, he made his was to the bathroom. After finishing his business he returned to the room only to see an old man sitting on a chair next to the bed. The man had these funny looking robes of red and white with a wide brim hat that had the symbol for fire on it. The old guy also had some really weird tattoos below his eyes.

Then it hit Naruto. This was the Hokage. It startled him and he was more than a little scared. They had found out he was practicing ninja techniques. That was the only reason the Hokage would come see him. He knew he was going to be in trouble, but he didn't think the Hokage would get involved. The blonde took a deep breath to explain when the old man began to speak.

"Ah, I see you're not only awake but up and going. You gave us quite a scare there." Naruto just stood there, eyes-wide and trying to think of what he was going to do. "Please. Come sit down child. You're not in trouble if that's what you're thinking. I would just like to know what happened to you. First you disappear with no trace for two days and then faint dead away when a ninja finally finds you near the forest. You've been asleep for another two days."

'_Oh crap. What to do, what to do? If the Hokage finds out I was training I'll be in big trouble. They will never let me be a ninja. I am Naruto Uzumaki, the kid everyone loves to hate.' _Thoughts racing, Naruto slowly made my way to the bed and hopped back on it. With a feeling of lead in his stomach he looked back at the Hokage. The old man was smiling.

"Oh don't look so grim Naruto. I've known you to run away from time to time, but never for so long. I am only worried about your safety. The world is no place for a small boy all by himself. It's why I have the ninja looking out for you." He was still smiling and chuckled slightly. Naruto tried to take in what the Hokage said.

"So... so you're not mad at me?"

"Heavens no child. You've had a hard life and I could hardly have expected you to do anything else. The real surprise was that the Chuunin on duty didn't notice a thing until you didn't get up in the morning. They were quite upset to have been fooled by a few old clothes under the covers.

"You've run away before, but always there was someone looking out for you. I knew you were escaping the ninja every now and again to play your pranks but they had always been able to find you within a few hours. When it took so long for us to find you this time I was worried something had happened to you."

Naruto's jaw dropped as he stared at the Hokage. "Worried? A-about me?"

"Of course Naruto. Why wouldn't I be?" He paused a moment and looked at the boy while Naruto tried to find a polite way to tell the old man that no one else would care. He spoke before the boy had the chance. "Do you know what it means to be Hokage?"

"Huh?" '_Where did that come from?'_ "It means that you're the leader of the village because you're the strongest ninja," Naruto answered.

The old man chuckled. "Most seem to think so. But to be Hokage is to be more than the strongest. A Hokage must look after all the people in the village. He must love each person in it and look after them."

"All of them?"

"Oh, it isn't easy. But you learn to look past people's faults and see the good in them. Each person in this village has value. You just need to find it. As the ninja saying goes, you need to 'look underneath the underneath'."

"But what about all the mean people?"

"I'm not happy about how the people of the village have been treating you Naruto. You are only a boy with a good heart. But they aren't bad people. They just have made some bad choices."

Naruto thought about that for a bit. The blonde knew that when the villagers didn't think he was around, many were happy and seemed really nice. It's why he wanted them to notice him. He wished they were nice to him as well; or at least not hate him and send him away all the time.

"Do you know the story of the Fourth Hokage, Naruto?"

'_What?' _"Wasn't he the one that died when he killed the Demon Fox?"

"Something like that. Do you know why he was a Hokage?" Naruto shook his head. "There were many that wished for the title. It was never a competition, but I was getting old and while I had never said I was looking for a successor, people knew it was about the time for me to choose.

"I watched ninjas who wished for the title try and out do one another. They boasted of their skills or the missions they had been on. They sparred with anyone they could find in order to display their strength. They allowed no one to forget that they were the best. But none of these would have been a good Hokage.

"As I told you, it is not just about being the strongest. There were only two I knew who held the potential to be Hokage. One was a quiet man who had great strength and a keen mind. It was his goal to learn all the jutsus in the world. He was a power to be feared, but did not participate in the boasting and sparring that so many others started. He didn't need to, for everyone knew of his skill and none dared challenge him.

"Then there was the second one. He was a young man who enjoyed laughter and games. He, too, had great strength and a keen mind. Yet it was his aim to protect those around him. He never displayed his strength save for a time of need. He was a great ninja and had saved many. But he was most well known in the village for his cheerful attitude and for playing with the village children.

"It was for this reason that I chose Arashi. While the first was strong, he was not happy with his strength and wanted more. Yet Arashi was content. He only wanted enough strength to protect this village. And he protected this village well. Many died by the hands of the Nine-tails, but Arashi found a way to defeat it even though it would cost his life. He was saddened by the thought, for there was much he still wished to do, but he did not allow it to stop him. For the good of the village he gave his life willingly. I often wonder if the first man would have done the same, though I doubt it."

There was nothing else said for a long time. The Hokage seemed lost in memory while Naruto was trying to figure out what all this meant. It didn't make sense to him, and the boy started to fidget a bit. The longer the old man stayed silent the more he wiggled. The blonde began to wonder if he could sneak out while the Hokage was thinking.

"Naruto." He jumped a bit when the Hokage called his name. "Did anything happen to you when you ran away?"

The Hokage thought Naruto had run away again, even though he hadn't. He didn't want to lie about where he had been, not to the Hokage; but he didn't want the old man to find out he was training to be a ninja either. He might say he loves everyone in the village, but Naruto didn't want a Hokage getting mad at him. There was only one answer to that then. The blonde shook his head no.

"Then why were you so exhausted? I've never known you to sleep so long."

Naruto shrugged. "I was tired. I hadn't slept more than a few hours while I was gone and all I wanted was to go home to bed, but I couldn't seem to get back up after I ran into that ninja." It was the best answer his eight-year-old mind could come up with and he hoped the old man would take it. After all, it was the truth - just not the whole truth.

"I see. Well, I think it's about time to get you out of here. You've already gotten dressed so let's get going." The old man held his hand out to Naruto as he got up and the boy reached out and touched it. The Hokage gently closed his hand around the child's and tugged on it slightly. The boy slid off the bed and followed the Hokage, hand in hand, down the hall.

Naruto couldn't say anything. How many times had he seen a kid walking down the street with their mom or dad holding their hand to make sure they didn't run off? How many times did he wish he had someone to do that with? And here was the Hokage, holding his hand like he was his dad. Well, maybe not his dad. He was really old after all. More like his grandpa.

The Hokage walked Naruto all the way home. While the villagers still gave him the same looks, it didn't seem nearly as bad without all the mean whispers to go with it. He began to wish the Hokage would walk with him all the time. When they reached the apartment, Naruto unlocked the door and the old man followed him in. The boy sat down on the wobbly folding chair so the Hokage could have the nicer one.

The small flat wasn't anything special. A small square table with two old folding chairs and a faded couch with a lopsided bookcase was all the furniture in the front room/kitchen. Naruto was glad the bedroom door was closed. The floor would be littered with dirty and clean clothes, and the bed probably needed to be made if the ninjas had discovered the old clothes under the blanket.

There was silence for a long time. He didn't know what else the Hokage wanted, but the more time the old man spent here the more likely he was to find out Naruto was practicing to be a ninja. That would be a very bad thing.

"You go to First's Elementary School, do you not?" The boy nodded at the strange question. "How do you like it there?"

Naruto scowled as he thought about how to answer that question. The teachers hated him just like everyone else seemed to, and he got the worst assignments of the entire class. None of the kids liked him either. The late kids usually had to sit next to him and if he tried to sit next to someone else to start with, the kids moved to another spot. No one wanted to be near the freak.

It was pretty boring too. Did they really have to spend two weeks on multiplying by twos and threes? He had understood it the first time the teacher explained it and they always said that he was the stupid one, last in the class. If that were true, and if he had understood it, then everyone else had to have been bored out of their minds, right?

And the new teacher he got in this year was really ornery. Sleeping through class was the best idea he had ever had. She might glare and yell at him all she wanted, but Naruto didn't have to pay attention to it most of the time.

"I see." He looked up at the Hokage in confusion. He hadn't said anything yet But the Hokage was looking at Naruto with a sad expression on his face as he brought out a pipe from his robes to smoke. He took a few puffs before continuing. "Naruto. Have you ever thought of going to the Ninja Academy?"

'_Oh crap! Does he know?' _Naruto thought while shaking his head negatively. _'I might want to be a ninja, but to go to the Academy? They'd never let me thought the front doors.'_

"Would you like to?"

"Of course!" '_What kind of question is that?'_

"It's a few months into the current school year, but I think I can pull a few strings to get you in. Would you like that?"

"Hell yeah!" The boy jumped up excitedly, only to clap his hand over his mouth and stare at the old man in shock. He did NOT just swear in front of the Hokage. In front of the villagers wasn't a problem. They say worse things about him. But this was the Hokage!

To Naruto's surprise the Hokage didn't get upset. Instead he chuckled for a bit as he gave another puff on his pipe. "Then it's settled. Today is Saturday in case you didn't know. You'll have Sunday free and on Monday you'll start to attend the Ninja Academy. You're a little young; most children don't transfer until they're nine. But we've had exceptions to the rule before and I'm sure that we can arrange something." He stood up and ruffled the boy's hair as he walked back to the front door. He paused before leaving and turned back to the blonde. "Take care of yourself Naruto. You should know that there are those that care for you and worry when you run away."

Naruto thought about that as the Hokage left, but he couldn't remember seeing anyone besides the Hokage that didn't look at him like he was lower than dirt. He remembered when he was still in the orphanage a few years ago, and how Kogeru-san looked like she wanted to kill him every time he was around her. He learned quickly to avoid her when he didn't have meals. During meals he ate quickly so that she didn't have time to insult him, or give him chores around the place.

The other kids also learned quickly as well, but about different things. It was better not talk or play with him. Kogeru-san was really nice until someone started to play with Naruto, then they'd get the same treatment he did. It hurt when they would all sit down to eat and there would be complete silence until Naruto left. Then he'd hear everyone start talking from down the hall. He wanted so much to be like the other kids: to have Kogeru-san tuck him in bed at night, to tell him everything was going to be okay when he cried, or give him a hug when he scrapped his knee.

He ran away from the place when he was five and slept under benches or behind buildings until a ninja picked him up a few days later. It was then that he started to live on his own in an apartment.

He was told that this was where he would sleep and this was where the food was and there would be someone to come by once a week and make sure everything stayed in good condition and drop off more food. The ninja told him that if he wanted to stay here Naruto would have to make sure all the chores were done and everything would stay clean. So he did.

He never wanted to go back to the orphanage and he didn't mind having to make his own meals. Kogeru-san had stuck him in the kitchen as often as she could as punishment for one thing or another. He would have to handle the hot pans or cutting the vegetables more often than not.

He received a lot of burns and cuts, but they were always better by the next day. Compared to helping her and the older kids, cooking alone was easy. At least no one tried to trip or startle him while he was in his own place. Besides, the ninjas only seemed to buy ramen most of the time and that was easy to make. It got old fast, but he learned to like it. At least there were so many different flavors.

That was about all that had gotten better for him though. He was still lonely in his new home and there seemed to be more people that looked at him like Kogeru-san. All the adults he ran into during the day had that look, and the things they said weren't very nice. Whenever he tried to play at the park or in the sandbox one of them would always pull the other kids away. Sometimes the kids wouldn't even know who the grown-up was, but it never mattered. The kids would be taken away and he'd be left to play by himself.

Luckily he started school the year he moved out of the orphanage. While it wasn't fun, at least he had something to do. School went all year long except in July and the only day off during the week was Sunday with half days on Saturday. He hadn't been REALLY bored except on weekends and some of the weeklong holidays.

Those were the worst. Everyone would be together as a family and he was stuck all alone and the only people that talked to him were mean. He cried a lot and ran away a few times, but always came back. Where else would he go?

He had lived like that for a year before meeting Mendo and his gang, and things had gotten better from there. And now he'd actually be able to go to the Ninja Academy. He would be turning nine this year, which meant that if he were normal he wouldn't have been able to go for another year. But he didn't care.

He'd show everyone that he could be a great ninja. He went to sleep that night and dreamed about the Fourth Hokage playing with children. When Yondaime noticed Naruto off to the side watching he came over and invited him to play. It was the best dream he could remember having.


	2. Chapter Two

CHAPTER TWO

"The Academy teachers have arrived Hokage-sama." The old man looked up from his paper-covered desk and thanked Tayona. He finished signing his name on the request for additional funds needed for repairs in the Northern sector of the wall and stood up. As he walked to the conference room he wondered exactly how he should handle this.

The Academy teachers would not be happy with the assignment to watch Naruto while they continued to teach class. It would be difficult, but with Naruto's recent escape the Hokage needed him somewhere more stable. The old man knew how the villagers felt about him, but his recent attempt to run away worried him.

Never before had the Chuunins watching him fail to find the child within a few hours. If Naruto couldn't find a goal to hold on to and keep him anchored here in the village, Sarutobi was afraid Konoha would lose him forever. Besides, he could only pay the Elementary school to teach him and request the teachers to be professional and hope for the best. At the Academy he could order the teachers to do so and if it did not happen, he could replace them.

"Hokage-sama!" A chorus of voices greeted Sandaime as he walked into the room. He gestured to the dozen young men and women to sit back down as he walked to his place at the front of the room. The old man turned back to them, observing each one of them. '_Can I trust them to put aside their own hate and anger?'_

"I'm sure you are wondering why you have been gathered on such short notice. I have been very pleased with your progress with the current students of the Academy, but I'm afraid that I must give you one more." He could see the confusion in their eyes, but as well-trained ninja, none asked what they were all wondering.

"I understand that this is an unusual event. Classes are already two months in progress. However, this is also an unusual student. He is younger than most of the new beginners, only eight-years-old, but I also do not expect him to become a Genin until the usual age of 12. I am transferring him for safety measures and expect you to watch over him and teach him what he would have learned in elementary school had he not been forced to transfer." Now their confusion was turning to curiosity as well. The Hokage gave a mental sigh as he gave the teachers the last piece of information.

"You all know of this student in one way or another, but I expect you to be professional ninjas and not give way to the usual emotions that are tied to this young man. I will allow you to confer and decided how you want to deal with the situation on your own as long as no foul play is involved. He is starting his Third Year, meaning he has learned the basics of reading and writing and is starting on division and multiplication tables. I expect you to expand upon that to make sure he is not left behind his peers when they join him in two years. Is this clear?"

There were nods all around and the old man waited for the question to be asked. It didn't take long for one of the young men, Yamato-san, to speak up. "So sorry Hokage-sama, but who is this young man we are to teach?"

"Naruto Uzumaki." Those two words were all it took for hate and outrage to be displayed by most in the room. Sarutobi kept his face clear of emotions while disappointment and frustration raged within him. How could these ninja not see the sacrifice this young child has had to make? To have no family, friends or acknowledgement. To be hated and feared by all who crossed his path and never know the reason why.

"There must be a mistake Hokage-sama. The demon cannot be allowed to learn the ninja arts!" Taimono-san's voice was the loudest of all the murmuring and shocked statements flying about the room. It was probably the most accurate on how they all felt as well.

"Enough!" Even as old as he was, the old man's voice was still able to cut through the rising panic. They all went silent as they looked to the Hokage, pleading with their eyes for this to be a cruel jest or a terrible dream. "Are you truly ninjas, to be acting in such a childish manner?" Those words made more than a few teachers glance away in chagrin.

"As I said before, I expect you to be professional and not give way to the usual emotions tied to this child. Yes, Naruto will be trained as a ninja. He is not the demon-fox, but a young child cursed to live a lonely life, hated by all for no reason he can fathom. Do not forget that he does not know what he carries.

"He will be arriving Monday to start classes. I will have a young Chuunin bring him by. If you cannot treat him with kindness I expect you to treat him fairly and civilly inside and outside the classroom.

"As stated before, you may decided where to place him and how to deal with him, but if there is any hint of mistreatment, you will find yourself in my office with a heavy penalty to be given depending upon the severity of the act." He allowed the frustration and anger he felt to show as he met each pair of eyes in the room. No one could keep eye contact for more than a few moments and the old man felt as though his message had been received loud and clear.

He stood and looked around the room once more. "I leave you to decided your course of action and expect a plan to be laid out on Tayona-san's desk before you leave." They were silent as he left them to vent and bicker among themselves. He knew Naruto would be forced to deal with hate and fear at the Academy just as much as he had done at the Elementary, but here Sandaime could make sure the teachers followed orders. It didn't hurt that Naruto would gain the knowledge of how to defend himself in the future as well. Sarutobi had a feeling the young child would need it.

-Scene Break-

Iruka Umino looked at his colleagues and watched the same shock as he felt running across their faces. They were supposed to teach the demon-fox, the same demon that had killed so many friends and family. How could the Hokage ask them this? Iruka would gladly give his life for Konoha and Sandaime, but this?

"What are we going to do?" Ruito Yamato could always ask the right question. Iruka watched as his colleague sighed loudly and brushed a few loose strands of hair out of his eyes. "We cannot disobey the Hokage. We must take Naruto Uzumaki on as a student."

"But we can't-"

"The demon-fox-"

"I'm sure there's-"

"Stop!" Ruito's voice cut through the noise before it could begin again. "We are taking him in. That is the Hokage's order. What will we do with him is what we need to discuss." He sighed once more. "I do not like the idea anymore than any of you, but we must take responsibility. There will be no more mention of the Ninetails. We all know who he is, but if we are to have any chance of following the Hokage's order of being professional, we must learn not to call him that."

Ruito was always the sensible one of the group. Ever since Iruka had started teaching, four years ago, Ruito has been the unofficial leader of the Chuunin teachers. He wondered if the older man would try for Jounin soon. He was certainly qualified.

"I will not teach him." Goju Taimono's black eyes glittered dangerously, daring any one to disagree.

"Neither will I."

"Nor I."

"Count me out."

More than half the teachers present refused to have anything to do with the demon-child. Iruka may have joined them, but was too shocked to do much of anything at the moment.

"You cannot disobey Hokage-sama's order!" Rage poured off of Ruito as he glared at Goju.

"Hokage ordered the brat to be allowed in the Academy. He said he was to be taught and we could decide how to do it. I believe one of us will have to let the little monster sit in with his class and give him busy work to learn on his own while we teach the real students. I'm only saying that I will not have him in my class." That made sense to Iruka. '_Who WOULD be willing to have the Ninetails in their class?'_

"Does everyone else agree with this idea?" There were nods all around along with some more murmurings of 'Not in my class!' and 'I won't do it.' "Very well, I will take Uzumaki in my class." Ruito looked resigned. He was probably wondering just how he would manage teaching the eight-year-old while performing the various exercises necessary for the Ninja Third Year class he had this year.

Ninja First Year was mostly training the students to use their body by running laps, doing push-ups, sit-ups. They learned the basics of taijutsu, kunai and shuriken throwing, as well as basic weapon lessons at the end of the year. History of the ninjas was taught year long to let the trainees rest their bodies as they were getting used to the work. It was all done in the practice yards or in the classroom.

During Ninja Second Year, students were expected to train physically on their own to keep up their strength, flexibility and endurance. More taijutsu lessons were given and the students learned to spar against one another later in the year. History, kunai and shuriken lessons continued yearlong. But there was more classroom time as students were expected to learn the Ninja Sayings that directed a ninja's life, how to disguise themselves in a crowd, trap identification and the uses of chakra. The last two weeks were spent on basic camping skills.

But Ninja Third Year… That was the most difficult year. Classroom work was the majority for the first few months as reviews from previous years began and they were taught the bookwork of stealth, ambush, and information gathering. The students would only leave the classroom for sparing and kunai/shuriken practice.

After the winter holidays the students would be going out in the village and practicing stealth, and information gathering while under supervision. There would also be more survival trips and going out to the woods for trap laying lessons in the fall and spring. The Ninja Third Year class was rarely in the classroom save the last two weeks of school where they would review before taking the Genin exam.

It was had enough to supervise a class of a little more than ten regular students without adding the nine-tails to the mix. Iruka was humbled by Ruito's willing sacrifice to deal with the demon-boy no one else wanted. Realistically the brat should have been placed with one of the teachers in Ninja Second Year as they had the most classroom time. Iruka was teaching a group of Ninja First Years, and even that would be easier to add the nine-tails into than to drag the brat along on class field trips. Before he knew what was happening, Iruka was volunteering to take the fox in his class when Ruito needed it.

His colleague just looked at him in shock for a few moments, as did the rest of the teachers. Everyone knew he had lost his entire family to the Kyuubi, which far outweighed many of their own losses. "Thank you Iruka. I appreciate that." Ruito gave Iruka a smile before standing up, signaling the end of the meeting. "I will plan his curriculum. The rest of you must only keep a civil tongue and make sure your students don't bully Uzumaki-san."

As Iruka stood to go, he wondered what he had just done.

-Scene Break-

Saturday and Sunday were boring. Naruto was too excited with attending the Ninja Academy to sit still after the Hokage left, and he didn't feel like just walking about town or playing pranks. After an hour or two of sheer boredom, he snuck away from his ninja watchers. He noticed there was only one ninja watching him again and wondered why they changed.

Two pranks played later he was in the woods and going through his exercises. He knew it was risky, but he figure he was already in the Ninja Academy so he couldn't get into too much trouble. He kept his senses alert to have plenty of warning when someone came near. He just wanted to practice henge some more and made an oath that he wouldn't faint this time. The first time must have been a fluke or something.

He molded chakra and pushed out, feeling the knives stabbing him all over. He felt a snap inside of him and knew he made the change, but couldn't open his eyes yet to check. The knives had stopped but his skin felt stretched and taunt and every time he tried to move his muscles would freeze up and the knives would return to that section. Everything burned, inside and out. He just stood there and waited for the sensation to pass.

It seemed like forever, but couldn't have been more than a few minutes before the blonde could move again. He looked into the stream and sure enough, the same blonde woman as before looked back at him. But the whisker-like scars were still there. Ignoring that fact, Naruto took a deep breath and tried to change back. Nothing happened.

Keeping his panic down, he tried again. Gathering his chakra he tried to make his thoughts wander like he did before. He started thinking about what flavor of ramen he'd eat when he got back home and what he wanted to learn after he mastered henge. It didn't work.

Nervous didn't begin to describe how he felt by then, but he knew he had changed back before so he tried it again. Gathering his chakra he just let it sit once more while he thought about who he was rather than what he looked like. That got his chakra moving. He put more into it, not thinking about what shape he was, but what made Naruto, Naruto?

Blue-eyes, spiky blonde hair, and a big grin to show the world he didn't care what they thought. An unbreakable will to succeed and a hard core of determination to show every one they were wrong. Those whisker-like scars on his cheeks that didn't seem to want to go away even when he transformed, and the way he couldn't stand still for long and sitting down for class was the hardest thing he had to do before he started sleeping through school. How much he'd rather be running through the streets or woods than to stay cooped up inside.

He felt the chakra pooling into his stomach and the knife-stabbing pain came back, along with the 'my-skin-is-on-fire' feeling. It took only a few heartbeats, but it felt like forever. When the pain died back down and he could move again, the face in the stream was his own.

He tried a few more times, each time the pain was easier to handle. After a few times his muscles started to get stiff and moving became difficult. Naruto ran through his stretches and exercises again to help relieve the built up tension. When night fell he was able to run home instead of staggering. He took a round about route so any ninjas watching his home wouldn't know he came from the woods.

The three minutes for his miso ramen to cook was an eternity, but after eating he went straight to bed. On Sunday, Naruto ditched his ninja watchers again and set up a few pranks that would take a while to be triggered. He trained in a different spot, but there wasn't much improvement.

By the end of his training session, the pain levels were still high, but he could change back into his original form almost as quick as he could change into his female form. He spent the last two hours of the day doing laundry and other chores so he wouldn't get in trouble.

Monday came and he was up bright and early. The blonde showered, ate breakfast, brushed his teeth and combed his hair. He waited outside his apartment for whoever was supposed to take him to the Academy. He knew where it was, but he didn't want to disobey the Hokage, and he had no idea where he was suppose to go once he got there.

So he waited… and waited… and waited some more. Naruto knew he was probably early when he stepped outside at seven, but it was close to nine and no one had come. If no one arrived by nine-thirty, he was going to go on his own. School started at eight. There was no way he was going to miss his first day, ninja escort or no ninja escort.

But the ninja came by a little after nine. Naruto told him off for being late and complained about how could he be a good ninja if he was late for his first day, but the ninja just ignored him. Naruto was used to it by now, but it made him feel better by taking out his frustration on the guy by yelling at him.

The blonde walked behind his escort and it took twenty minutes to get there. Naruto could have made it in five by running on the rooftops, and he knew all the ninjas that watched him knew he could do that. '_He must really want me to be late,' _Naruto thought.

By the time they reached the Academy gate Naruto had run out of things to say to the rude ninja. Instead, the blonde was busy mumbling under his breath, staring at his feet and shuffling along slowly. He found that when he was sulking, or pretending to, people didn't think he was paying attention to them. He could look out of the corner of his eyes or listen to conversations without anyone knowing as long as he mumbled incoherently and kept his head down. Useful thing.

As he walked through the yard he noticed a group of kids, probably around nine, running around the edges of the yard in a line. The last one was struggling to keep up, but wasn't falling further behind. Naruto could tell the guy in front wanted to go faster, but he kept glancing at the teacher who was watching all of them carefully. He bet they had to go at the same speed.

The blonde looked at the teacher, who had a faint smile on his lips as he watched the students. Then he glanced in Naruto's direction and the faint smile became a definite frown. Naruto had learned to tell when someone was glaring at him, even when his back was turned. There was a certain feeling to hatred and anger that could always be picked out from other looks. As he followed the ninja in through the front doors, Naruto could tell that there was a killer glare following him. The blonde got a sinking feeling in his stomach that Ninja Academy might not be so different from First's Elementary. He didn't that thought.

The two went down the main hall and up the stairs to the second floor. Two doors down on the right seemed to be his classroom. A deep gentle voice had been talking, but stopped as the door opened. Naruto had stopped grumbling when they had started up the stairs and tried to look past his escort's legs to see what was going on in the class.

"You're student Yamato-sensei." The ninja stepped to the side and pushed Naruto into the class. He stumbled a bit before catching himself and looked around. They were all older than him, around Mendo and his gang's age. He bet this was a Ninja Third Year class.

Everyone looked at him with angry eyes too. The kids at the elementary school didn't like him, but that was because he was a freak that all the adults hated. This was different. They not only disliked him but they were angry with him too. _'Why? I haven't even started class yet. Is it because I'm late? Stupid ninja!'_

"Ah. Naruto Uzumaki, correct?" He turned his attention to the man in the front. He was wearing navy blue with a green vest that Naruto knew had tons of pockets. He was like Naruto's ninja watchers then. It was his voice that the blonde had heard before the door had opened. But it wasn't so gentle now. It had a hard edge to it and that sinking feeling in his stomach got worse.

Naruto nodded a bit and didn't dare breathe incase the teacher kicked him out. "Please take a seat over there while I finish with the current lecture. I will then instruct you on what you are to do." The teacher pointed to a seat in the back corner next to a boy with brown hair pulled back into a short ponytail at his neck.

The boy looked upset but didn't seem dangerous so Naruto made his way over to the seat and sat down. Once he was there, Yamato-sensei started talking again. The blonde ignored him for the moment as he studied the room. There were three rows of three desks each. Each desk had three chairs and each row was on a higher level than the next. The bottom level had one desk with one chair and a bunch of books on top of it. That was probably the teacher's desk. There were windows to the outside but they were on the opposite side of the room from Naruto.

Naruto looked at the boy sitting next to him write things down. Next to him was a thin book labeled Ninja Sayings. He took a risk and opened it up and looked at a few pages. Each on had a number and a small saying. "A ninja must look underneath the underneath." "The true ninja art is trickery, to fool the opponent." "A ninja must always hide their emotions and never show their tears." It looked rather boring. When he caught the brunette glaring at him for looking through the book, Naruto closed it and grinned an apology.

He tried to pay attention to the lecture Yamato-sensei was giving. There were a few diagrams listed on the board and he was talking about various ways a ninja could be ambushed. Almost half an hour later, the teacher handed out a few worksheets, each with a different scenario that the students were to use. They had to write how they would set an ambush for any incoming ninjas.

When the students started working on their own, the teacher walked up the stairs towards Naruto and motioned with his hand for the blonde to follow him. He told the class he was stepping outside for a moment but expected the class to behave and work on their assignment while he was gone.

Naruto was a little overwhelmed by everything. The class was still glaring at him and the teacher seemed to act just like his other ones. Why was he in such an older classroom? And what was Ruito-sensei going to do since he was so late today? They didn't speak until he had led Naruto down the hall and through another door that contained several desks in a circle in the middle of the room. They walked down the steps into the room and sat down at one of the chairs.

Yamato-sensei just stared at Naruto for a bit while the blonde stared at his hands and tried not to fidget. He didn't know what that stare was. It had a bit of anger in it, but not all of it seemed directed at Naruto. That was new.

"You've just started your Third Year in Elementary, correct?" Naruto looked up at him and nodded. "We have a bit of a problem then. You see, most new students have completed their Forth Year. They know how to read and write well and know addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division without much thought going into it. They also know the basic history of the Fire Country and only have to be taught the shinobi aspect of it, that which is needed to be a ninja. I'm assuming you were taught the basics of reading and writing and I was told you had started learning multiplication tables and simple division, is this correct?" The blonde nodded again, not sure where Ruito-sensei was going.

"You have been put in my class as there are no classes for those your age. I don't have the ability to teach my class and give you constant attention as well. You will need to learn on your own for the most part and do your own exercises when we are in the practice yard for sparing and shuriken practice. Do you understand?" Naruto nodded again. '_So what am I suppose to do if I'm not going to learn what the class is?'_

"I've prepared a set of work for you that you will do each day. When the class goes to the practice yard, you will join us, but instead of the advanced work that we will be doing, you will do laps, push-ups and sit-ups as you would have if you were in a beginning class, is this understood?"

Naruto frowned a bit, but nodded all the same. He wanted to learn how to be a ninja, but he needed to learn multiplication, division and basic history first it seemed. That was okay. He could do that. He was the slowest in his class, but if he worked hard, maybe he could learn faster.

"Now, I've started you out with simple history stories, multiplication and division. It should last you for a few weeks." He handed Naruto a thick folder with a bunch of papers in it. He opened it up and the sheets contained stories a few pages long and some questions at the end. Some were filled with multiplication and division problems like they had been working on in class before the henge incident.

Halfway through the stack the stories got longer with smaller type and the multiplication problems had more numbers in them and the division problems were set up differently as well. The blonde frowned at them while he read the directions and then nodded as they made a sort of sense.

He figured he could finish most of it by the end of the day and surprise Ruito-sensei if he didn't take a nap. He didn't usually care to finish his homework but if he needed to learn this before they taught him how to be a ninja then he wasn't going to waste any time. He nodded once more and looked at Yamato-sensei incase there was anything more.

The teacher looked at him for a little bit before speaking again. "If you had entered the Academy at the usual time you would have had an entire day to learn what being a ninja is about and what is expected of you and how the system works. You'll have that lesson in a few years instead, but let me give you a quick run down.

"Here at the Academy you are a ninja trainee. You will train you body as you would have trained your mind in Elementary. The Ninja First Year is dedicated to getting your body up to speed with your mind as well as giving you the history of the shinobis that isn't given to the general populace. Ninja Second Year teaches you how to use what you have learned with the stamina you have trained your body to have. The Ninja Third Year teaches the necessary skills you need to be a successful ninja such as stealth, survival, information gathering, and how to identify ambushes and set up your own. "

"When your Third Year is completed you are given a test to qualify you for the Genin position. Genins are the lowest ranked ninjas. As a Genin the highest ranked ninja, a Jounin, will teach you while you are placed on a three-man team. In-between those two is the rank of Chuunin, which is where your Academy teachers are ranked."

Yamato-sensei seemed to want to say something else, but just nodded at Naruto and asked if he understood. When Naruto nodded the teacher started up the stairs to the second floor door. The blonde followed him and they returned to the classroom. The child could tell the kids had been talking to each other while the teacher was out, but the other kids did that all the time in elementary so he didn't think it was strange. They were even able to stop talking before the teacher walked in which was more than Naruto's old class was ever able to do.

The blonde went back to his seat and sat the folder down on the desk. He took off his backpack for the first time that day and got out a pencil. Not knowing what he needed, he had packed light: a few pencils and a thin notebook. The work was easy enough and Naruto ignored the teacher when he started speaking again and concentrated on getting as much done as possible. The message in the office was loud and clear. Until he could get done the work Yamato-sensei gave him he wasn't going to be participating in the regular class or learn how to be a ninja.

-Scene Break-

It had been a week since the Nine-tails had started at the Ninja Academy and still, whenever Ruito stepped into the staff room everyone turned to look at him. They all wanted to know how the day went with a demon in the class.

His own classroom was placed in a position that allowed Iruka to see Ruito's class when they practiced in the yard. He had seen the blonde demon running laps as the class practiced kunai throws to each other. There was a certain sense of satisfaction when he realized that the class liked to throw the occasional kunai at the fox brat. They may have been blunted kunai, but Iruka still enjoyed seeing some of them hit home.

Ruito never said much to the other teachers but always reassured them that nothing happened. But today, Ruito walked as if in a daze and sat down at his desk without returning a polite hello to anyone. The only response to those who greeted him was a simple nod of his head.

The older man took a green folder off a stack of lined paper he had brought in and started marking it with a red pencil. The rest of the staff went back to what they were doing before he came in, but Iruka watched his co-worker from his place two seats down from Ruito.

His colleague worked quickly through the first half of worksheets and slowed down on the second. Iruka could see him shaking his head from time to time and he seemed to be muttering something as well, but Iruka couldn't make it out. When the older Chuunin had marked the last page, he just stared at it for a moment before shaking his head again and setting the folder to the side. He then started in on the lined paper, which seemed to be a writing assignment on ambush traps.

Iruka had a Ninja Second Year class, and due to the large amounts of classroom time there were a lot more worksheets and quizzes to correct than the other two years. The other two teachers of his year didn't take as long as Iruka due to the younger Chuunin's continued glances at Ruito. When he had finished grading his own class work he realized that Ruito was the only teacher left in the room.

The man seemed to have finished the lined paper assignments some time ago and was staring at the green folder again with a thoughtful look on his face. After ten minutes without moving, Iruka's curiosity was at it's peak. He quietly moved over to see what had captured his co-workers attention. It was a long division sheet, something he would expect to see in the late Third Year at the elementary. "What's so interesting about simple mathematics that you would stare at it for ten minutes straight?"

Ruito jumped and Iruka realized the older man hadn't noticed he was there. That was a first. Ruito always made sure he knew what was going on around him. "Iruka!" He looked at the younger Chuunin wild-eyed for a moment before taking a long breath. "Sorry about that. I was thinking and lost track of myself."

"I'm sorry for startling you. I just finished grading my class's papers on trap identification and noticed you were still here. I wondered what had you so wrapped up. You're usually the first one to leave."

Ruito was waving Iruka's explanation away before the brunette had even finished it. "I just had a slight puzzle to figure out before I left." He gestured to the papers in front of him. "What do you make of this?"

Iruka wasn't sure where his colleague was going with this, but picked up the stack and looked threw it. There were various pages filled with math problems and some history stories that had questions at the end of it. The handwriting was most likely a child's as the numbers were a bit larger than the rest and slightly crooked. "It looks like worksheets for a Third Year elementary student. What about it?

He ignored Iruka's question and gave him another one. "When do you learn this kind of math?"

Giving him a puzzled look, Iruka answered, "In late Third Year I suppose. Just before they teach you problem solving questions and that's just before you move on to Fourth Year."

"Exactly." Ruito riffled through the packet once more and gave the younger Chuunin a math worksheet of long division that came from near the end. "If you were to have a late Third Year doing these problems, what do you think would be different about this page?"

Iruka was completely confused by now but looked back at the page. He tried to remember how he was taught to start long division at that time. "I guess I would expect the multiplied number to be written down and then the subtracted total instead of only the subtracted total. See here. 52,752 divided by 42. 42 goes into 52 one time and a Third Year student would put the number 42 below the '52' in 52,752 and then subtract. Instead all you see is the '10' that was left over and the '7' brought down to join it. It never shows the subtraction. Is that what you're talking about?"

Ruito nodded. "So what age do you think you'd have to be to do all subtraction without showing your work? And the student doesn't have a calculator." He added as an afterthought.

"Well, nine-years-olds that enter the Academy could do it. I'm pretty sure that they could do it by mid-Fourth Year Elementary. Where are you going with this Ruito?"

"Who was the new student that started class with me this week? And what grade did he just start?"

Iruka looked at him stunned. "You mean the Nin- I mean Naruto Uzumaki?"

"I'm saying exactly that." Iruka just looked at his colleague in disbelief and as he continued. "I got in contact with his old teacher over the weekend. She claims that he has a history of skipping a lot of the classes last year, and for this year he sleeps through most of the day. He has the lowest marks and I expected him to be a bit slow and something of a troublemaker.

"So I put together some busy work I expected to keep him busy for a few weeks and thought up a few punishments that the Hokage couldn't dispute and would teach Naruto that I wouldn't tolerate any nonsense. Instead he hands me this at the end of the week, completely filled out and hasn't fallen asleep once."

He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "It doesn't add up. I thought after the first few days he'd get bored and start some trouble when he didn't do anything right out. When he handed me the packet I thought that maybe he had just done a few of the problems and guessed on the rest, but he's correct ninety-five percent of the time. The ones that aren't right are off only by a few numbers and I can see where he went wrong.

"At the end of his first day I gave him the instructions to only work on the packet during class and Naruto promised to do it. When he gave me the completed packet I asked if he had done any of the work at home. The kid glared at me and was rather vocal in his claims that he hadn't. He might have been lying but I didn't get that impression."

Iruka continued to stare at Ruito. What could he say? If it were any other child he'd be asking questions left and right trying to find our just how smart the kid was. He was doing work a little less than a year ahead of himself with no prior training. Was it talent or did he learn from another source? Was it just luck or would it occur again? Did he have talent in just mathematics or in other subjects as well? What about physical activities? Did he have skill with kunai or taijutsu? How high was his endurance, speed, or strength?

Geniuses were rare, but even if the child was a highly talented student, teachers would love him. But this was the Nine-tails they were discussing. Do demon's know mathematics? Was this a sign that the Hokage was wrong and Naruto Uzumaki was truly a demon and not just a carrier like he claimed?

"I'm not sure what I'm suppose to do. If he can pick up long division this quickly I'll have to keep him busy on history and start him off on word problems. Then move on to the ninja word problems we start the Ninja First Years with. I can up his history but I don't want to have him bored when he finally enters First Year.

"I get the feeling that he's been trouble to the elementary teachers because he was bored more than anything else. I mean, during outside practice I gave him the standard first day practice that Ninja First Years have: ten laps, and 25 push-ups and sit-ups. And that was with the back training yard, twice as large as the front one the First Years practice in. He seemed to finish it halfway through kunai drills.

"He claimed I was busy so he did the entire routine again, all on his own. A normal kid would have just sat out and waited till I was done if they could even finish it in time. Heck, I didn't expect him to finish the laps let alone the sit-ups before kunai practice was done. When we went to sparring I had him sit out and watch. Instead of going to sleep of trying to find something to keep him busy, the kid watched the entire hour. He didn't seem to be daydreaming or anything."

Iruka could only look at Ruito. The older Chuunin seemed to have forgotten that this was the Ninetails. The great Demon-Fox that took down three nearby villages and over a hundred ninja before the Hokage stepped in. Even then it wasn't really defeated, just sealed away.

"The kid is nothing like I expected. I'm going to have pace him so he won't outstrip his year too much. I figure we may want to place him in the Academy early to help with that. Maybe next year, if he covers all of Fourth Year Elementary material. I don't want to teach him kunai throwing or taijutsu or he'll be way ahead of his classmates. I'll have to talk to the Hokage about having him enroll regularly next year. I might be able to manage that..."

"Wait, wait! Hold on!" Ruito looked at Iruka as if remembering he was there. "You're suggesting that the Ninetails should be enrolled in the Ninja Academy early. The teachers don't even want him to enroll in the first place and you're going to tell the Hokage that he needs to be placed early?" Just last Saturday Ruito was upset at the rest of the teachers and now he was rambling on about Naruto Uzumaki as if he were an honor student! Did the Demon have hypnotizing powers they didn't know about?

"Iruka." Ruito said his name so seriously that it snapped him out of his thoughts for a moment. "I watched this boy all week. I saw him come in the door on the first day of class. My class was angry that they would have to baby-sit a little kid, let alone the 'troublemaker' of the village. They all glared at him when he walked in that door and I saw the hurt in his eyes before he looked away and grinned at them all.

"I talked to him many times and not once could I feel any anger, hatred, or malice from him. I was there when the Ninetails attacked. I would know that chakra anywhere. It wasn't there. Try it. Try sensing it. You know it as well. Who could forget it?

"All we have at the Academy is a small boy that has no friends or family. All we have is a small boy that has been struggling in school because there was no challenge and the teachers didn't care to look. Think of what he could have been if someone noticed this earlier?"

Ruito paused and placed a hand on his younger companion's arm. "No one else wanted him in their class so I accepted it. Now that he's in my charge I'm going to make sure that I do my job right. Do you understand, Iruka? He isn't the demon-fox. The Hokage is right." He paused to let that sink in for a moment. "All we have here is a little boy without a home. You should know what that feels like."

Iruka didn't think his jaw was hanging open, but if it wasn't, it should have been. Ruito Yamato, his mentor since he began teaching, was telling him that he knew what the demon was feeling? Could demons even feel? He couldn't believe Ruito was saying this. How could Uzumaki not be the Ninetails?

The demon-fox was thousands of years old, the most powerful demon lord in the underworld. How could a newborn child hold such a creature at bay? Maybe the thought of Ruito being hypnotized hadn't been a simple flight of fancy. It was the only answer Iruka could think of that would explain this total turnaround.

"Think about it Iruka. And try getting to know Naruto. You won't find a demon there. Yondaime must have sealed him too deep to be seen. If he didn't have those scars on his cheeks you'd never know him from another child except for his ability to pick things up quickly. And I'll find out just how far that ability can go." Ruito patted his colleague on the back, grabbed the folder off his desk and left Iruka alone in the staff room.

There was no question about it. The Ninetails had done something to Ruito.

And Iruka Umino would have to do something about it.


	3. Chapter Three

CHAPTER THREE

Ninja Academy was turning out better than he thought. The student sitting next to him was Hitori Yurete and turned out to be a pretty nice guy. He introduced himself the second day before class and let Naruto look through his books during lunch break. Most of them were too confusing, but there were some that he could understand. Hitori liked to give him advise so he'd be ready before the rest of his classmates when started Ninja First Year.

The first day of physical training had been a surprise. He had been given a number of laps to run and a few exercises to complete while the other students practiced kunai tosses to one another. They weren't even halfway finished when he finished so he decided to run through them again.

When he had started jogging around the field the second time around one of the students had thrown a blunted kunai at him. He threw it back and glared at the older kids smirks when the kunai didn't go very far. A few others were thrown at him before he finished his laps and each time he couldn't throw it back far enough to hit anyone. When they started doing it the second day he started watching for the kunai and tried to dodge out of the way. He still couldn't throw them worth shit.

Hitori gave him some advise at the end of class on how to toss a kunai properly and Naruto snuck in that night and stole a few of them from the tool shed. By the end of the week most of the kids tossed a kunai his way while he jogged, but he could dodge a few of them and could toss them back to whoever threw it at him without loosing the distance. He still needed work on his aim though.

It had become more of a game than anything and the class lightened up on the glares. Naruto guess that being a personal target was good for something. They could take out their frustration and be done with it instead of hating him for the rest of the year for who knew what.

The work packet Yamato-sensei had given him was difficult when it started on something new, but he worked through it and had it done by the end of the week. He had wanted to work on it at home as well so he could finish faster, but he had given his word. One of Mendo's saying is that a man wasn't worth anything if his word couldn't be trusted. "Never promise nothin' you don't plan to do. "

Instead Naruto ditched his watchers in the evenings, played a prank for cover and worked on his taijutsu. Since he had to spend an hour a day watching his classmates spar he took mental notes on moves he wanted to try. He still practiced henge, which was getting easier to do, but there was still too much pain and too much time to use it effectively when dodging ninja.

That weekend he met up with the gang and told them about starting Ninja Academy. They treated him to ice cream in celebration and Taiko pulled him off to the side and warn him about a few of the guys in the class he should avoid. It had been a while since he saw the group and it felt good to have some fun. Naruto loved his Sunday.

When he entered the school on Monday he greeted Hitori with a large grin and a loud hello. The older boy just waved tiredly at him and kept his head on the desk. _'Looks like someone didn't get enough sleep last night,'_ Naruto thought.

The blonde had barely sat down when Yamato-sensei had stepped in the room. He spotted Naruto and waved him over to the desk up front. There weren't many students in the classroom but the teacher kept his voice low as he addressed the small boy.

"I've graded your packet and you got a ninety-five percent accuracy rating. You seem to have a grasp on the mathematics that most your age don't." Naruto took the extended green folder on reflex. He was a bit stunned. No one had ever complemented on schoolwork before.

"You answered the simple history stories rather well, but you also had the information right in front of you. I'm giving you a history book to read and I'll test you on the information at the end of the week without the book. On this, you're allowed to read outside of class."

Naruto nodded as the teacher continued. "I'm also giving you another packet for math problems. These aren't the same division and multiplication worksheets you did before. You'll be reading a paragraph that gives you information and then you'll need to answer the question at the end. The first half you'll use all the information given and have to decide to use multiplication, division, addition or subtraction to solve the problem.

The second half you will use all the information and use a combination of multiplication, division, addition and subtraction to answer the question. Some of the problems will have two questions you'll need to answer. Remember to show your work. Even if you just have to add two and two, I need to see that you use those numbers to get the answer of four. Do you understand?"

The blonde had to think about what his teacher told him before nodding his head. It sounded complicated, but he thought he got the idea. He wouldn't know for sure until he tried it. Thanking Yamato-sensei, Naruto made his way back to his seat with the old green folder, the history book and a new blue folder that was half as thick as the old one.

Class started without a problem and Naruto started on his math problems.

"There are four apples on the table. Three are eaten. How many apples are left on the table?" Naruto scoffed at how easy that was. Yamato-sensei made it sound hard. He worked through several pages without having any troubles. It was boring until they started needing multiplication and division.

"There are twenty-four pieces of candy and four friends. If they shared equally, how many pieces does each friend eat?" It took a moment to figure out what he needed to do, but after that, the problems were a synch. Hitori reminded him when it was time for physical training and when the class returned Naruto decided to start on his history text.

That was boring. When he complained to Hitori after class got out the older boy advised him to start taking notes or he'd just have to read it again. By writing down the facts he thought the teacher would ask about he'd only have to remember that instead of the entire book. The blonde didn't like it but vowed that he wouldn't read the text a second time. Once was enough.

Hitori headed off while Naruto packed his bags. He took his time walking out of the Academy and down the street to his apartment instead of the usual run. Training was something he enjoyed doing, but he wasn't sure if he should read more of the history book first. He hadn't even finished the first chapter out of ten and he needed to finish it and be ready for a test by Saturday.

"Naruto Uzumaki, correct?" The voice brought Naruto out of his mental debate. The blonde looked up to see another ninja in navy blue with a green vest. After attending the Academy for a week Naruto knew that navy blue was the Chuunin uniform while black was reserved for Jounin.

This Chuunin had dark brown hair gathered into a spiky ponytail at the top of his head. His brown eyes didn't stare at him with hatred as Naruto was used to, but had a hard glint to them that made the blonde's spine tingle. He looked rather plain, save for a thick scar that crossed the bridge of his nose under his eyes.

"I'm Iruka Umino. I teach one of the Ninja Second Year classes." The Chuunin waited for Naruto to nod in understanding before continuing. "I know you've been at the Academy for a week and wanted to know how you're doing? It's rather unusual to have a child attend as young as you, especially while working on your own for the most part."

Naruto was a bit wary of Umino-sensei. Even his own teacher didn't ask him questions like 'How are you doing?' He was certain most of the adults in the village would rather die than ask him something like that. The only one he could remember doing so was the Hokage, but Umino-sensei didn't have the kind eyes and gentle smile that the old man did. Still, he didn't want a teacher at the Academy mad at him.

"Eh… It's sometimes tough but mostly I'm not too bored, and Yamato-sensei doesn't seem so bad." He gave the Chuunin a grin while scratching the back of his head. What was he suppose to say to something like that?

But he must have answered right as Umino-sensei just nodded his head. "I see." When he paused he gave Naruto a look that made the blonde's hair stand on end. There didn't seem to be any real anger or hatred Naruto could sense, but something in the brunette's eyes scared the shit out of him. "Do you know that in a few months your class will need to go on extensive field trips in order to learn the skills they need for the Genin Exam?"

That was news. He shook his head no and Umino-sensei continued. "When they do, I've volunteered to watch over you so your class wouldn't be hindered in their lessons. I thought I might introduce myself to you."

Naruto was a bit miffed that he'd be left behind. _'Honestly, I'm working hard to be included. I've got a few months. I'll have that history stuff aced!' _But it was kind of nice that Umino-sensei had taken the time to introduce himself. If that cold feeling the Chuunin's eyes gave would go away, the blonde might even feel happy.

As if he realized that Naruto wasn't too comfortable around him, Umino-sensei wished him well and said they'd talk later. Taking the opportunity, the blonde gave a quick bow and thanked the Chuunin before running for home. Deciding that history was more important as he only had a few months to catch up to his classmates, Naruto skipped most of his training. He'd sneak out after dinner and do a bit of taijutsu and kunai practice. Right now, he had a book to defeat.

-Scene Break-

Iruka made it a point to great the fox-carrier at least once a day. It may have been hard to hide any anger or hate he held for the demon, but a driving determination seemed to overlay any lasting feelings of revenge. If he had to make friends with the brat to find out what he did to Ruito, he'd make friends with it.

It took a month before the blonde kid seemed not to squirm in discomfort whenever Iruka said hello, or asked how his day went. The Chuunin waited for another week before inviting the demon out to lunch on one of the Saturday half-days.

Not wanting to spend a lot of money, Iruka took the demon to a ramen stand a few blocks away. Ichiraku's was a decent place and the owner moved in a few years after the Kyuubi attack so he wouldn't refuse service. The old man and his daughter might have been told about Naruto's dangerous and troublesome personality, but no one would break the Third's law and mention the Nine-tails.

As it was, Iruka learned not to take the blonde out unless the kid was paying for his own food. As a teacher he knew children generally ate more than an adult, but nine bowls of ramen was not normal! But it had seemed to win the fox-carrier's friendship. Iruka spent the next month listening to the blonde babble about his day whenever he asked how the brat was doing. And listening to more pleas for Ichiraku's.

Despite all his observations while trying to pinpoint how Ruito had been hypnotized by the Nine-tails, Iruka could find nothing. It may have discouraged him, but the Chuunin was determined to get to the bottom of this problem. Each week that passed made Ruito more and more enamored of the blonde demon. The older teacher was silent with most teachers, but seemed to open up when it was just the two of them.

While the brunette tried to be polite, and encouraging, each time he heard more praise about Uzumaki Naruto, his mission to help his friend became more urgent. Luckily, November had arrived and Ninja Third Years were due for camping and survival trips for each week of this month. Iruka was hoping that by having Naruto in his class he would find out what had happened to Ruito. He was prepared for whatever jutsu the demon would pull on him.

But first he had to find Ruito to find out when the class left for the first camping trip next week. Some teachers went at the beginning of the week and others opted to spend a day in class reviewing before finishing the week out in the woods.

"There you are! I've been looking for you Ruito!" The black-haired Chuunin turned at Iruka's call. Ruito had been practicing at one of the many training halls that populated Konoha. It was his usual routine on Sunday to hone his own skills, but Iruka hadn't known which training spot the older man would use this weekend.

"Iruka? What do you need?" Ruito sheathed the sword he was practicing with and walked over to a bench along the training hall. Iruka joined him as his fellow teacher used a towel to wipe off the light sheen of sweat he had worked up.

"Nothing much. It occurred to me that survival trips start next week and wanted to know when to expect Uzumaki Naruto in class. I didn't know if your class left on Monday or Tuesday. And does he have assigned work he still needs to finish or do I need to get him something to do?" Iruka kept his tone polite and slightly disinterested. No need for Ruito to know that he had been waiting for this for a while now.

"Oh! I forgot to let you know. I'm sorry about that Iruka. It was very kind of you to volunteer yourself like that, considering…" The younger Chuunin pointedly ignored the implications of that statement. Giving a small cough, the older teacher continued in a slightly uncomfortable voice.

"Ah- I meant to say that while I'm grateful for the offer, Naruto will be coming with the class this week, and next week as well for the trap-laying trips. For the stealth and ambush trips I haven't decided, but while he might do alright in the stealth techniques, I doubt he'll be up to ambush tactics."

Iruka could only stare at his co-worker while his mind raced on the implications. "Do you mean to tell me that you're taking an eight-year-old on a week long survival trip in a densely predator populated wood, as well as allowing him to set up and or possibly trip several potentially deadly traps for an entire week, and are debating on allowing him to participate in search and destroy missions?" He didn't bother to hide his rather dubious opinion on the matter. He might be skeptical for different reasons than the concern of a young child, but it was still a rather stupid decision.

"Haven't you been listening to me the past few weeks? The boy has taken anything I can throw at him. The dry history texts were supposed to slow him down, but he seems to go threw them faster. He still completes all the work I assign with an average of 93. The lowest grade I've given him was an 88 last week and that was on a Ninja Second Year mathematic sheet dealing with complex angles in shuriken throws.

"I've told you about my class throwing kunai and shuriken at him. Despite any warnings I've given them, they continue to do so. It's like a forbidden game or something to the class. And Naruto just grins and waives it off when I try to talk to him about it. That boy has gone from being able to dodge only a few projectiles, to catching shuriken and kunai and throwing them back without breaking his stride!

"And have you ever seen the kind of pranks the kid pulls. He knows more traps than my class has and they've studied them for over a year now. All it takes is to get him to set up kunai, logs and shuriken instead of paint, mud or confetti.

"I doubt he'll find a little hunting and trap making difficult. And with the amount of work he puts into staying quiet and hidden when setting up a prank, stealth shouldn't be a problem either. Besides, he turned nine last month, remember?"

Iruka listened to Ruito's rant and felt his dismay grow with each word. He'd only been paying basic attention to Ruito's praise for Naruto. He hadn't known the blonde was that far ahead. He tried to find someway to convince his friend to leave the boy behind. How could Iruka find out what Naruto had done without being able to watch the demon?

"Hold up a moment Ruito. I thought you didn't want Naruto to be too far ahead of his classmates once he started. Even if you got permission to start him next year, you'll have taught him almost half of all three year's curriculum!" Iruka prayed for Ruito to see the light.

"Your right. I will. But I never gave him a single kunai lesson and he can throw it as well as any second year I know. He's already read enough history to be up to par with his current classmates and I'm beginning to believe that I'll have to dig into the advance Third year math problems by the end of the year.

"If he does well on the survival trips I think I'll talk to the Hokage. All I'd need to do is teach him basic taijutsu, ninjutsu and information gathering and he'd be able to pass with the current class."

That was going way too far for Iruka's comfort. Sure there had been a few Genin's pass before eleven before, but they had been prodigies such as Kakashi Hatake or Itachi Uchiha. And they had prior training at home before attending the Academy. There was no way anyone could just start the Academy with no experience and pass in a year. Even if they could keep up mentally, it took an entire year to train most students' bodies into a decent condition to just start using chakra, let alone do ninjutsu.

"Have you lost your mind Ruito? This isn't some kid raised by an elite clan to handle the life a shinobi. If you disregard what he is, than this is just some kid taken off the streets with no knowledge of how to fight, or use chakra. The most he's probably done is run around the village while victims of his pranks chased him. There is no way his body would be ready for it.

"If you remember what his is than he's a danger to the village if he can pick up fighting that easily. If he doesn't remember what he is, obviously he does subconsciously. After all, the demon wasn't an easy opponent." The anger in Ruito's eyes was enough to tell Iruka he had crossed an unspoken line, but the younger Chuunin was past caring. If subtle methods of finding out what was wrong hadn't been working, than maybe confronting the issue head on would knock some sense into the older man.

"Iruka. I thought we went over this. Naruto is not a demon. I've seen you talking to him, and you've never complained before about his talent. In fact, if I had to guess you almost seemed to encourage it when we spoke. " Ruito's voice was cold and hard.

"Even if I had come to grips with it, do you think the rest of the staff will? What about the villagers? What will they think when they see the demon-carrier excel at fighting?" Despite the training hall being empty save the two Chuunin's Iruka tried to keep his comments quiet. If anyone without prior knowledge heard this conversation it would be death.

But his heated questions seemed to hit their mark, as Ruito's angry stare had turned inward. There was a frown marring the older teacher's face and his brow was creased in thought. Iruka felt a sight rise of hope as the silence continued. It was dashed when Ruito spoke next.

"Thank you for pointing that out Iruka. I hadn't thought of it that way. I'll still be taking Naruto with the class, but I'll make sure to think our options over carefully before talking to the Hokage." Iruka wanted to shout 'That wasn't what I meant' and shake his friend until the man understood the danger he was in. Instead, he watched as his friend walked out of the training hall lost in thought and felt as if he had just made the problem worse.

-Scene Break-

This had been the hardest most frustrating school year of his young life. It had also been the most fun Naruto had ever had. His classmates still didn't talk to him much save Hitori, but they didn't seem to hate him. The kunai and shuriken practice had become the highlight of his day.

His aim got better and he learned the trick to catching kunai and had gone on to mastering the shuriken when they started practicing that in October. It had been fun to try flips and spins while running in order to dodge the missiles before he learned how to catch the damn things. When he started hitting his classmates back they seemed to throw the weapons at tricky angles and when his back was turned.

The history books had been no fun, but he was determined to go on those survival trips with the class. Whatever time Yamato-sensei had given him to read a book, he halved it and took the test with 90 accuracy. It cut into his henge practice, but Naruto decided he could perfect that later. Instead, he only practiced to keep up his taijutsu and throwing skills and called it good. His class time was kept busy with math problems that had started to make his head hurt.

But it had been worth it. He had been allowed to go on the weeklong survival trip and Yamato-sensei had even bought his supplies when the shopkeepers had kicked him out. He even owned his own set of real kunai and shuriken, not the blunted ones he had 'borrowed'.

During the trip he had learned to hunt with only a few kunai and shuriken, and set simple traps for rabbits and quail. Hitori had been his partner on many of the expeditions, but occasionally he had been paired up with a different classmate. He made sure he didn't keep any of them behind. There were a few scary incidents of meeting a wolf in the woods or cougar in near the mountainside, but he followed directions from whoever his partner had been and they came out fine.

The next week, they spent most days in the wooded training areas setting up complex traps. Naruto was rather surprised to find out he knew more ways to set up traps than his classmates. It took a bit to figure out how to use the shuriken and kunai instead of spray-paint cans, but the log traps were easier to place than mud buckets.

Thursday and Friday were spent in groups of three setting up traps around a campsite and trying to defend a colored flag while trying to find and capture a similar one from a different team. Naruto, Hitori and a girl named Mitsune passed that test. Naruto's traps hadn't let anyone near the site even when Naruto and Mitsune left to capture another flag.

The plan had been for Naruto to detect the traps while Mitsune fought any opponents. Unfortunately, their opponent happened to be Shokuma, one of the top three taijutsu-students. Even with his two teammates out capturing another flag, Shokuma was more than a match for Mitsune. When the blonde noticed his teammate about to loose he joined in on the fight.

Shokuma hadn't expected Naruto to know taijutsu and wasn't prepared for the dual attack. Despite never having a professional lesson in his life, Naruto's unorthodox style of street brawling mixed with taijutsu let him keep up with the older two. Shokuma's traditional training hadn't allowed him the predict Naruto's moves. Add in the kid's small stature and Shokuma had been taken down relatively easily.

When they returned with the flag, Mitsune had drilled Naruto on how he knew how to fight. Hitori had scoffed at the idea and the blonde had to challenge the older boy to a spar. The rest of the weekend had been filled with fighting against both his teammates and getting pointers from both of them.

Yamato-sensei had talked to them after the assignment about his fight skills as well. Much to Naruto's surprise he had been offered private lessons in the evenings once December started. But they still had the ambush and stealth practical to get through first. Luckily, the blonde boy still had the same team.

They had four days as the ambushers and then swapped with the teams being ambushed. Those being ambushed had a scroll they were suppose to get back to the main campsite that Yamato-sensei had set up. The first two days they were suppose to make camp and defend from defense attacks. They had the second two days to get back to the main camp. If the team lost the scroll to stealth attacks they could still get a few points by returning a second, smaller scroll that could not be taken during the first two days.

Mitsune, Hitori and Naruto were paired against Satsuko, Kenji, and Kouga. Kouga was a rough and tumble fighter and the top taijutsu user of the class. Kenji was the best in trap detection and could hold out well in a fight. Satsuko was the leader of the three but was better in distance fighting with kunai and shuriken.

Hitori led their team, but Naruto didn't mind. He was happy to still be included. The older boy had them split up to search for their opponents and return to the main camp in a few hours. Naruto had found a few other teams, but not Satsuko's. Mitsune had the same results, but Hitori had lucked out. He had Naruto go back in and scout the traps Satsuko had used but make sure not to be seen.

When the blonde returned he diagramed the enemy campsite and Hitori had planned their stealth attack. Most of the teams would be alert for an attack during the night as it was easier to sneak around in the dark. They might have a chance if they snuck in at dawn, when the lighting was poor, especially with trees for cover.

Some of the traps were tricky to get by, but Hitori let Naruto lead them through half an hour before daylight. Kenji was on watch when they arrived, but seemed rather bored. Mitsune was light on her feet, and when the sun started to lighten the sky she made her way into camp. If any member of the team was caught, they would have to return the scroll and try again. No fighting was allowed until the third day.

Unfortunately, Satsuko held the scroll. While Mitsune had gotten past the watch, the opposing leader spotted her. Not giving away her teammates, the girl had given up and allowed Kenji to lead her out of the camp. Kouga and Satsuko were on high alert for Naruto and Hitori, but they kept to their hiding spots and didn't make any tries for the scroll until Satsuko's team had relaxed a bit.

Hitori struck next. Satsuko had handed the scroll over to Kouga since Mitsune had seen her with it already. The boy had tucked it in his back kunai holder. When he went to the bathroom, Hitori transformed into Satsuko and met him before he entered the camp. 'She' had requested the scroll back, reasoning that Kenji had spotted the enemy watching the camp. They must have seen the switch, but wouldn't suspect Satsuko to take it back while Kouga was out of sight. Hitori sealed the deal by explaining that 'Satsuko' had created a bushin to fool the watchers into thinking only Kouga was missing from camp.

'Satsuko' had instructed Kouga to go back to camp as if everything was normal and the 'real Satsuko' would sneak back in on Kenji's signal. Hitori's act worked like a charm, and Naruto led him back out of the traps without any problems. When they met up with Mitsune in the woods, she congratulated them on the success. They spent the rest of the day discussing ambush methods and survelience tactics.

Since they didn't know the exact route Satsuko's team would take they couldn't place any elaborate traps. Naruto had a few he could put together in a quick amount of time, but they still needed to know where. Hitori decided that he and Mitsune would track Satsuko's team and when they got a decent bearing Mitsune would run ahead and meet Naruto with the information. She could help speed the trap laying and attack from the front while Hitori attacked from behind.

The trick was to subdue and capture the opponents instead of true harm. They had blunted kunai and shuriken to help keep casualties at a minimum, but unless one hit a lucky spot, they wouldn't be enough to knock an opponent out. Naruto suggested some net traps that he could set up while the other two fought and led the three enemies to the location and Hitori agreed.

They added a few trip wire traps the blonde could use and practiced taijutsu for the rest of the day. They slept during the afternoon and left when the sun went down. Satsuko might have figured out that the scroll teams could technically leave the designated camping area as soon as it hit midnight.

Unfortunately, she had been smart enough to move the original campsite, probably as soon as the team had realized Kouga had been tricked. It took a few hours to find them, but Satsuko's team was spotted shortly before midnight. Luckily, the raven-haired girl hadn't been smart enough to realize that technicality.

Naruto left Mitsune and Hitori to watching the campsite and waited impatiently for Mitsune to show up. It wasn't until the afternoon that his female teammate arrived with the message that Satsuko's group was heading back by a circle to the east. Between the two of them they had the simple traps set up over a wide area and waited for Hitori to arrive.

It took another hour, but luck was still with them. Kouga ran point with Satsuko and Kenji backing him in a triangle formation. Naruto rolled his eyes when he realized that while Kouga was watching the front and the other two were scanning the sides, none of the three were watching their backs. Kenji had spotted a few of the traps, but in an effort to go around them, Kouga set off some of the ones he hadn't. Naruto waited long enough for Mitsune and Hitori to both attack before heading off to the west to place the net and wire traps.

They worked like a charm and Satsuko, who had run out of weapons to throw, was caught in a net right off. Kouga was furious and charged Hitori, but had forgotten to watch for more traps. A simple trip wire caused him to loose his balance long enough for Hitori to knock him out with a hand chop to his neck. With his two teammates out of the fight, Kenji was easy to take down. The triumphant team dragged the three back to camp (Naruto led the still awake and rather tied up Satsuko back by kunai point) and passed with flying colors.

They had a day to relax before their own turn to keep the scroll came. There were a few insults from Kouga about cheating, but Yamato-sensei kept the other boy in line. When they received the scroll from their teacher they set out with a few ideas of what their opponents had done wrong.

First of all, Hitori had them set up camp with simple traps for detection rather than capture. Then he had one teammate sleep while the other two kept watch on an eight-hour rotation. The sleeping teammate always held the scroll. Before any teams could have a chance to infiltrate they set up a few simple hand signs to tell if someone was a henge or a true teammate. Instead of trying to hide the scroll, they kept it out in plain sight. It might have been easier to spot by enemies, but Satsuko's team had failed to notice its disappearance when they kept it hidden.

Satsuko's group made several attempts, but the scroll was still with Naruto's team when the two days were up. They left at midnight and made a straight line for the main campsite. It took an hour or two to walk there but by running they hoped to reach it in half an hour. Naruto had no troubles keeping up even when they went to the trees closer to their goal to help avoid detection. He thought of it like roof hopping but with a smaller landing zone.

They reached the main campsite without any opposition. When they reached camp only one Chuunin teacher was awake. He seemed surprised but when he noticed Naruto his eyes changed to one of hatred. The blonde was used to the angry stares, but it seemed to take his teammates aback.

"Did we do something wrong sensei?" Hitori asked in a questioning voice. It would suck if they made it this far and failed for breaking a rule they hadn't considered.

"No. Most don't think about heading back this early. Yamato-sensei is sleeping, but you need to wake him up and report in." Naruto kept quiet and watched his teammates exchange looks before thanking the teacher and moving off to where they knew Yamato-sensei was.

"I wonder what that was about. You prank him recently Naruto?" Not wanting to explain Naruto just shook his head. Mitsune didn't ask again and they woke up their teacher without any problems. Yamato-sensei was a bit surprised as well, but got up and told them they needed let their opponents know as well.

The teacher led the way and woke up Satsuko and the group while Naruto's team watched. When the Chuunin informed them of why he had woken them up Kouga exploded. "WHAT! It's not even one o'clock yet! How can they have passed already?"

"Kouga, the rules state that you can't start back to the main camp until the third day. Once the clock hit midnight the third day arrived. If you run you can cross the distance between the main campsite and the stealth testing area in a little over half an hour." The shocked seemed to make their teacher take pity on him. "Don't feel too bad. Not many think about that technicality. I've only had a few teams figure that out in all the years I've taught at the Academy."

Yamato-sensei let them go back to sleep, but Naruto didn't like the dirty looks Kouga was giving him. Satsuko and Kenji didn't seem happy to be outwitted again, but weren't glaring daggers at him. Why the other boy decided Naruto would be a good target escaped him, but Hitori and Mitsune didn't get the same glare as he did. He shrugged it off like he did the villager stares and followed his teammates to an open area to set out their sleeping bags. They had two days to wait before the exercise was over and they were tired from running.


	4. Chapter Four

CHAPTER FOUR

Naruto didn't get as much sleep as he had hoped. Around three a.m. the entire camp was waken up and shipped back to the academy while teachers went in search of the teams still left in the woods. There had been some sort of emergency in the village while they were out but no one would say anything.

Naruto promptly went back to sleep as soon as his head hit the desktop. Save the short two hours of sleep at the main camp, the blond had been awake for nearly 24 hours. Add to all the activity they had to do and he was exhausted. He woke up to Hitori shaking his shoulder. The sun was approaching noon so Naruto stretched while asking his partner what had happened.

"The Uchiha clan has been massacred. No one knows how, or if they do they aren't telling. They claim that there is only one survivor, and he won't be waking up anytime soon." Mistune was sitting near by and gave her theory of missing-nins from Stone and it started a small debate. Naruto listened half-heartedly while trying to grasp the concept of an entire clan being gone.

The Uchiha were the police force of Konoha, but Naruto had never really interacted with them. As he listened to his teammates he wondered who the survivor was before shrugging it off and trying to catch more sleep.

The class had been kept until that night before family members were allowed to pick them up. No one was allowed to go anywhere alone. Naruto had been escorted home by Yamato-sensei, but his teacher had been rather quiet.

They had two days off from school, but Naruto's plans for practicing were dashed when Yamato-sensei told him he wasn't allowed outside of town until Konoha was out of its state of emergency. His teacher even forbade him from playing pranks! Still, it made sense to the blonde. People were in mourning and pranks would cause more grief than fun right now.

Needless to say Naruto had a very boring break.

-Scene Break-

Iruka listened to the Academy teachers rant about the lost Uchiha clan. They all had something to add when discussing punishments for whoever had done such a thing. The young Chuunin didn't know what to think. When it was first announced the ninjas of Konoha had been in shock.

The next step had been pointing fingers. It was surprising how many had first accused it to be the work of the Kyuubi. But Iruka knew that couldn't have been. He'd already seen Ruito and learned that Naruto had been with his teammates all night. They had come back to camp just before one o'clock.

Some ninjas had still argued that the demon fox could have fooled the Genin and transported the distance in an instant. But no one believed that they wouldn't have heard the sounds of battle had the Nine-tails truly attacked the Uchiha. Their clan had been one of the best fighters against the fox. They wouldn't have gone quietly.

There was nothing to it but to wait and see. ANBU hunters were on the look out for any tracks of those who had left Konoha as well as Uchiha Itachi who was missing. They didn't know if they would find a person or a corpse. Uchiha Sasuke, the only survivor, was still in a coma at the hospital. Who knew when he would wake up and if he had seen the attacker.

But even though there wasn't anything they could do, the Academy teachers still felt it necessary to met and discuss the situation. Goju Taimono was one of the few that continued the Kyuubi theory. The others were leaning towards Orochimaru, the legendary Sennin who had become an S-class missing-nin. Iruka was one of the few that hadn't formed an opinion at all.

"We can't let the fox get away with this! If we wait for the ANBU it may have a chance to escape!" Iruka sighed as he heard Goju's latest proclamation. The man seemed to love to yell. The young Chuunin had no love for the demon, but he couldn't help but think that Goju was taking this a bit far. The idea just wasn't feasible. Before the others could continue the argument that had been going for two days, a new voice interrupted.

"I think not Taimono. Naruto Uzumaki is not at fault." The entire room fell silent as they watched the Hokage enter. Iruka felt obscenely glad he hadn't participated in the discussion as he caught sight of the Third's face. The old man was not happy. Most of the others seemed to have similar thoughts, some of those who had participated looked rather sorry for doing so.

"With all due respect sir, how can we know that? We've allowed the demon to be taught the ninja arts. How can we know that he hasn't taken the teachings and used them for his own nefarious purposes?" Iruka stared at Goju in shook. Did the man have a death wish?

"Uchiha Sasuke woke this morning. The man who murdered the Uchiha was one of their own. Uchiha Itachi." There was a moment of shocked silence before the room exploded in outrage, dismay and disbelief. Iruka watched it all and noticed Ruito making his way towards him. The older Chuunin must have come in with the Hokage. He hadn't been in the meeting before hand. '_A good think considering what Goju had been yelling about Naruto. Ruito wouldn't have taken that well.'_

The Hokage silenced the room and explained what the ANBU had been able to piece together. It seemed that Itachi had learned a forbidden technique called the Mangenkyo Sharingan. Whether the technique drove him insane or he had always been biding his time until he had learned all the clan secrets, Itachi used this opportunity to kill his own clan. According to Sasuke the only reason Itachi had given was he wanted to test his abilities.

It made sense to Iruka. Everyone had been wondering what could take out the Uchiha as quietly as it had happened. No one had sensed anything until after the fact. But if a Uchiha been the murderer… well, most ninjas would be hard pressed to kill a family member. And betrayal from one that had such a high reputation as Itachi would be harder to accept. Shock would have given Itachi the time he needed to kill without resistance.

With the mystery of the massacre solved, the village was taken off high alert. There was still a state of emergency, but now the ANBU knew what to look for. The Academy would start up the next day as had been planned with no extra security needed. Uchiha Itachi most likely fled as no sign had been seen of him in the last two days.

When they were dismissed, Iruka exchanged a nod of greeting with Ruito and watched as the Chuunin teachers filed out of the room. Most seemed upset or still shocked at the turn of events, but Goju had an expression that bordered on murderous. Iruka watched as he fumed in a corner until the room was mostly empty before storming out the door. He wondered what his co-worker was thinking that would cause such a reaction.

-Scene Break-

"Dammit!" Naruto shook his hand, trying to get the feeling back into it while juggling his wooden short katana to his left. Ruito-sensei had struck it hard, almost breaking his fingers with a deft chop meant to unarm him. For three months his teacher had been giving him private lessons in weapon handling but each time Naruto thought he had it down, Ruito-sensei threw another trick into the pile.

They had started with taijutsu, but after a few lessons to refine Naruto's technique, Ruito-sensei had claimed that Naruto should practice on his own. The unorthodox style would serve him better than the basic style they taught at the Academy. Most ninjas would expect basic and the more complicated taijutsu Naruto would learn once he was a Genin. The blonde was rather proud of himself until Ruito-sensei had said the private lessons were gone.

Despite his resolve to behave in order to stay on his teacher's good side, Naruto had thrown a huge fit. He accused Ruito-sensei of trying to back out of his deal and demanded that the man teach him how to fight like he promised. The Chuunin had seemed rather shocked at his outburst and Naruto was just on the verge of apologizing when his teacher had started laughing. Since then Ruito-sensei had promised to teach him the way of the sword in place of the taijutsu practice and allowed him to call him by his first name outside of class.

They had practiced kenjutsu through December and January while learning about information gathering in class. Naruto now participated in the regular lessons while taking his regular math packets and history texts home. They didn't practice kunai and shuriken throwing anymore, but concentrated on sparring. The blonde even got to join in. He continually got his butt whipped for the first few weeks, especially since the older kids enjoyed beating on him. But each week he had less falls and he thought he might win soon.

In February they had more survival trips that interrupted Naruto's private sword training, but he was still rather happy since the class was doing history reviews between them. Having just learned the material rather than trying to recall it from a year or two ago, Naruto was doing better than most of the class. If only he was doing half so well in sword training.

"Remember Naruto, you need to keep a hold of your sword no matter what. It was good thinking to switch hands, but you can't wield the katana left-handed. Learn to work through the pain and never let go of the hilt unless necessary." Naruto nodded in understanding and stopped shaking his bruised fingers. He got back into a beginning stance and the two went at it again.

As usual, by the time he left Ruito-sensei for home, Naruto felt exhausted. His teacher was soaked in sweat, but didn't seem to have the bone-aching weariness the blonde felt. The boy went home, showered and ate before going back out to the training fields. Some time in January, his ninja watchers had suddenly disappeared, and Naruto had taken advantage of it.

Ignoring his weariness, he practiced the drills Ruito-sensei taught him for another two hours before throwing kunai and shuriken for half an hour and finishing it off with henge practice. Going home he took another quick shower and collapsed in bed for a few hours of sleep before getting up for Academy.

It was his usual routine. Naruto was determined to keep up with his class and wanted to learn swordsmanship as fast as he could. It was difficult, but it seemed like everyday became a little easier and each morning he would have a little more energy.

The next week his hard work paid off as Ruito-sensei allowed Naruto to use a real blade rather than the wood weapons. Another month went by before his teacher taught him henge and kawamari. That was when he discovered he had been doing the henge wrong all this time.

According to Ruito-sensei henge was suppose to be an illusion of another person. Touching something or being hit would break the jutsu. Not wanting to get in trouble, Naruto failed to mention his own practice where the female-Naruto seemed just as real as his real body. Kawamari was easier, as he didn't have to relearn it, but it still took a few days to master.

It was a few days into April when they started in on bushiin. They had taken to doing ninjutsu practice in the woods rather than the training halls. Naruto understood how to take a small portion of his chakra and place it outside of his body to create an illusion, but he didn't understand out to make it into a real body.

"Well, well, well. Are you playing favorites Ruito?" A deep mocking voice cut off Ruito-sensei's explanation. Naruto looked up to see a large man he recognized as another teacher at the Academy.

"What do you want Goju?" The blonde didn't like the way Ruito-sensei's voice went cold. It sent shivers down his spine.

"Nothing to concern yourself about Ruito. Imagine my surprise as I was going to find a practice area only to find my fellow colleague giving private lessons. You know we're not allowed to play favorites Ruito. I wonder what has gotten into you." Goju light and friendly tone sounded false even to Naruto, and the hard glint in his eyes didn't fit well with the words Goju was saying.

"I have the Hokage's permission Goju, you know this. If you don't need anything I'd ask you kindly to leave and let me return to my student." Ruito-sensei sounded like he had said this many times before. The two teachers glared at each other. Naruto's dislike of the situation increased when his teacher took two steps to the right and placed himself between Goju and Naruto.

"Worried about the little brat Ruito? Where has your common sense gone? That thing should not be allowed into the Academy let alone taught in private lessons! It should have been taken care of long ago. You have been blinded by something, just as the Hokage has."

"Whether you agree or not, you shall respect our leader's decisions. Leave Goju." Ruito-sensei had never looked cooler. The words Goju had been nothing new to Naruto. The blonde had heard worse in the streets. But no one had stood up for him.

"Mark my words Ruito. It was a mistake to teach that monster anything. You'll see." The large man threw a nasty glare at Naruto before turning away. Ruito-sensei didn't move for several minutes after Goju left the clearing. Naruto wondered what he had ever done to the Chuunin, or anyone for that matter, to gain such hatred. He seemed worse than most of the villagers.

"I'm sorry about that Naruto. I think we'll call it a night. Let me walk you home." Knowing he would receive no answers, the blonde didn't even try to question what had happened. Naruto skipped his night practice, and read his latest history book. Running into Goju-teme was something he wanted to avoid. Besides, he had a test in two days and wanted to make sure he'd pass.

He had forgotten about the incident by the time he went to the Academy the next day. Lunch consisted of his usual thermos of ramen, and the blonde was happily eating when he felt the urge to duck. A kunai speed past the place his head used to be and thunked into the tree he was leaning against. He blinked at it in surprise as his mind registered that it was a real kunai, and not a blunted practice one. If that had hit he might have been killed!

"Hey brat! Watch where you're sitting, you're in the way!" '_Kouga. That explains it.' _Naruto thought as he turned to his classmate. The older boy was already marching towards him - probably to get his kunai. The blonde shrugged in apology, scooted over and started eating again.

Kouga had been picking on him ever since the ambush training. Most of the class followed his example and were back to their original dislike times two. Naruto spent a lot of time avoiding surprise attacks. Kouga was just the worse attacker. If it hadn't been for Hitori and a few others, Ninja Academy would have been worse than Elementary. At least at his old school the students hadn't learned the most effective ways to hurt an opponent.

His lunch was interrupted once more when he had to duck again. This time it was a punch that sailed over his head. Not wanting to waste his ramen he did a quick spring to his feet and a fast back flip. After getting splashed numerous times, Naruto found that the faster he flipped the less broth he spilled. He could now do it without spilling a single drop.

Not expecting a second attack, Naruto started to leave but fell backwards when Kouga gave him a quick leg swipe. He took the impact with his back and used the force to bounce back to his feet while trying to keep his ramen intact.

"What was that for idiot!" Hitori had advised him to ignore the bullies, as they would stop sooner if he didn't react. Usually it worked. But this kid had gone to far. Kouga almost spilled his ramen!

"I don't need a reason to knock you around. Your worthless ass slows everyone down! How are we suppose to pass the Genin exams this month if we're stuck babysitting you? I'd be doing the class a favor if I got rid of you!" Kouga was on a roll today it seemed.

"You couldn't pass the exam with or without me. All you know how to do is fight. You need to have a brain to be a Genin too." The anger on Kouga's face was priceless, but Naruto had the feeling he was going to get his butt whipped for it. Sure enough, the older boy didn't waste any time. He charged Naruto, and the younger boy dodged Kouga's attacks frantically. Being the lowest ranking taijutsu user was a terrible thing to be when faced with the top taijutsu rookie.

An open-palm was about to slam into his face when another hand grabbed it. Naruto looked up to see Hitori had saved him again. "I think that's enough Kouga. If a little kid can rile you up this bad, maybe you shouldn't be a Genin yet. Maturity is a requirement as well."

Naruto held in a sigh of relief as Kouga glared and stalked off. He could hear the old boy's teeth grinding! Maybe Naruto should wait until he was a better fighter before starting something like that again. Apparently Hitori agreed with him.

"Why'd you do that Naruto? You know he could kill you if he tried."

"He was asking for it."

"That might be, but at your level you're not going to be the one to give it."

"I could take him!"

"Sure you could. You can't even beat me, and I have a hard time sparring against Kouga. And you haven't even learned basic taijutsu yet. What's Yamato-sensei doing in those lessons of yours?"

"Hey! He says I don't need to learn basic! My style is 'unpredictable and surprising'. It's better than the basic until I'm a Genin and my Jounin instructor can teach me the higher forms."

"So what do you learn now?"

"He's teaching me the three basic ninjutsu and started me in kenjutsu."

Hitori was quiet as the two started back to the Academy. Naruto finished the rest of his ramen before the older boy spoke up. "As I understand it, you need basic to learn the higher forms. Hhaving an unknown style is an advantage, but the concept applies to you as well. If you don't know basic, and your opponent is using it, than it's 'unknown' to you. Taijutsu is more important to know than kenjutsu. There's a higher chance of being caught without your weapons than being without your limbs."

Naruto thought about it for a while. "But sensei isn't going to teach me taijutsu. And if I did have a sword I'd have better reach and could deal more permanent damage with less effort." With a shrug, the blonde dismissed the topic.

Hitori didn't speak after they reached the classroom. The older boy was the only one to voluntarily talk to Naruto without a specific reason so the blond kept quiet as well. The other kids had been intimidated by Kouga or said their parents didn't want them to 'associate with that troublemaker'. Some like Mitsune were still nice when they could be, but Naruto wasn't worth getting in trouble over.

When class was over Naruto was ready to do his usual sprint home, do some reading, and meet up with Ruito-sensei in a few hours. A gentle hand on his shoulder brought him up short. "Hitori? What?" That was unusual.

Hitori didn't mind being teammates with Naruto and getting him out of trouble, but once school ended, they pretended they didn't know each other. Hitori's parents didn't want him hanging out with Naruto either, but they weren't the kind to look deeper than what they saw with their own two eyes. If Hitori said he didn't spend extra time with Naruto, and they never saw him talking to the kid after school, they didn't seem to mind.

"You're taking the Genin Exam, right?" Naruto nodded. "And Yamato-sensei's taught you ninjutsu already?" And a nod, but Naruto added a scowl as he thought of how bad his bushin and henge were. "And you're caught up in your studies?"

"For the most part. What's this about Hitori?"

Hitori seemed to hesitate before continuing. "I don't think you're going to pass." When Naruto opened his mouth to protest, Hitori waved his hands to calm him down.

"If you're even going to have a chance to graduate, you're going to have to do better in the spars. Maybe Yamato-sensei is hoping you'll graduate next year with a slightly closer age group, but I can't help but remember how good a teammate you are. You might be lacking in a few areas, but compared to some of these guys, I would rather have you on a team. Yamato-sensei might be right about your style being better, but if I taught you basic so you'd know what the other person is doing, you'd have a better shot."

He wasn't sure how long it took for the offer to get through to his brain, but once it registered, Naruto was doing a happy dance. Hitori looked rather amused once Naruto calmed down enough to arrange the details with his new teacher. When he used the term Hitori-sensei the brunette had laughed and told him not to call him that. After a short debate, Hitori was renamed Hitori-sempai. Naruto couldn't wait for his first lesson.


	5. Chapter Five

CHAPTER FIVE

Despite Hitori-sempai's lessons, Naruto failed the exam spectacularly. His bushiin had never turned out, and Ruito-sensei had told him that even if it had, he wouldn't have passed the blonde. In order to pass someone under the age of ten at least three teachers had to be in agreement and give a valid reason as to the early graduation. Besides, Naruto still need work on his henge and some of the basics he had missed. And wouldn't he rather be in a class with kids closer to his age? The blonde was annoyed at how right Hitori-sempai had been a month ago.

Now instead of a single month break, Naruto had two months until the next year started in July. No one else had failed the exam and all the other kids were still in school, whether Ninja Academy or civilian school. His kenjutsu lessons were only twice a week now, and Hitori-sempai was a Genin and wouldn't be able to teach.

After only a week, Naruto was going out of his mind. He visited Mendo and his gang once that week, but he tried not to go around them more than once a month. A prank would have been nice, but he was trying to be a good ninja, and good ninjas didn't prank villagers… at least he had never seen a ninja prank villagers. Either way, it didn't help him now. And there was only so much training he could do.

"Hey look! It's the brat! What's wrong loser? Is the little brat upset he didn't pass the big kid's exam?" This was just what he needed. A large grin found its place on Naruto's face as he turned to Kouga. By the end of the year he had been able to beat most of his sparring partners, but he had never been paired with Kouga. He had been itching for a chance to put the guy in his place. Besides, there were a few moves he couldn't use in sparing that would be perfect in a street fight.

"Eh, who cares about a dumb exam? If you passed, it couldn't have been that good." Kouga and his two teammates stopped laughing. The two boys were good fighters, just like their leader. One leaned more towards weapons while the other liked to team up with Kouga using taijutsu. They were set up as a heavy combat team. Eventually they would be good enough to go up against the front lines in a war and survive until reinforcements came or a plan was set. Naruto had a fleeting thought of hope that they would keep to one-on-one fights before he had to dodge Kouga's fist.

Hitori-sempai had been right about knowing your opponents style. Naruto added a few more moves to his own style, but kept to Ruito-sensei's advice of staying unorthodoxed. But knowing what the other guy was going to do made it a lot easier to dodge, block and counter. Within a few moments Naruto was able to get a solid hit in Kouga's midsection.

The bully backed off a bit while clutching his stomach. A glare and a growl was the only warning the blonde received before Kouga charged with more determination to beat the snot out of him. Naruto took a lot of hits before he caught the rhythm of Kouga's movements and with a quick step forward after a dodge, the boy was back in the bully's defense and gave a hard roundhouse kick to Kouga's side.

It sent his opponent staggering, but Naruto didn't let the opportunity go to waste and gave him a good kick to his groin. The blonde smirked at the sight of his long-time tormentor on his knees in agony. Unfortunately, he forgot about Kouga's teammates. They seemed to take their leader's fall as a signal for a double attack. Naruto was extremely grateful for all those practice kunai being thrown at him earlier in the year as he scrambled to dodge a flurry of very lethal ones.

Just as the kunai seemed to run out he was dodging a foot aimed for his head, and then a knife-hand aimed for his knee. With all his concentration on defending against his taijutsu foe, he almost missed the kunai aimed for his heart. Ducking out of the way, he heard a meaty thunk as it lodged into flesh. He panicked for a moment before doing a mental check of his limbs. Besides some nasty cuts from the earlier barrage and aches from where Kouga landed a hit, he felt no new pain. It only took a split second, but the realization that he hadn't been hit made Naruto more dazed than the sudden attacks from two directions.

He finished jumping back into a defensive crouch and checked on his two opponents. The kunai-thrower was staring at where Naruto had been in shock and didn't seem inclined to attack anytime soon. When he looked at his previous opponent he realized why. The boy had taken the kunai meant for Naruto just below his neck and slightly to the right. A trail of blood trailed down his chin from his mouth and he seemed to be frozen with both hands holding the kunai as if he didn't really believe it was there even if he could feel it.

The boy didn't sound like he was breathing right and Naruto's panic tripled when he gave a final little choking sound and fell backwards in a faint. 'Kunai-thrower' shouted in denial and Naruto looked back in time to see the older boy rush forward towards his teammate. As he passed, the blonde noticed Kouga still on the ground staring at his downed lackey with wide-eyes.

As if Naruto's attention had reminded the bully he was there, Kouga's gaze locked with his own. They went from wide-eyed surprise to narrow slits of hatred. That was all the blonde needed to prompt him to leave. If the older boy wasn't dead, he would need help, and staying would only get him more trouble with Kouga. Ruito-sensei would know what to do.

-Scene Break-

Iruka watched as Ruito finished a report on his observations of the other Academy classes. Ever since the older teacher had started to try and sway his fellow ninjas to 'understand' Naruto Uzumaki his respect and standing among them had fallen drastically.

On the other hand, the Hokage had seemed to gain more respect for the Academy teacher. While that might have been a good thing in theory, in reality it meant he was given more responsibility and more missions than Ruito had ever wanted. The older teacher had even stated he wasn't sure if he should really take the Jounin test as he had planned. He reasoned that the higher pay and rank didn't seem worth the excuse it would give the Hokage to give him even more work and harder missions.

In the last week since his own class had taken their Genin Exams he had observed a few hours of each teacher below him and was to report on their teaching style and the effectiveness thereof. The Hokage also seemed to want his personal opinion on every student in the Academy as well. Considering there were three years with four teachers each and around ten students to each teacher, it had been a long week.

Iruka hadn't seen Ruito smile save at the tail end of a kenjutsu lesson he had given Naruto a few days ago. It had upset Iruka to see his mentor smile genuinely at the demon brat when he could only dreg up a half-hearted grin when working. That had prompted the large fight the two men had when they caught dinner together that night.

As he had done all year long Ruito insisted that Naruto wasn't Kyuubi and Iruka was an idiot for thinking otherwise. Iruka wouldn't budge on his opinion and it degenerated from there. Iruka had been trying to find some way to break the spell Kyuubi had seemed to place upon his mentor, but he couldn't even find one shred of evidence that he could take to the Hokage or someone higher up that might have more luck freeing his friend.

He had hoped that when Ruito tried to pass Naruto during the Genin Exams that he could contest it and show his fellow ninja just how blind he had been. But Ruito had surprised everyone and didn't pass the trainee.

When Iruka asked him about it his friend had given him a detailed list of what Naruto needed to improve. Ruito claimed he was glad Naruto hadn't mastered bushiin. There were trainees that could pass without knowing bushiin, but they usually had extenuation circumstance. Even if the blonde never learned that skill it would help him to stay in the Academy longer. "The worse thing a teacher could to is to pass a student that isn't ready," Ruito had said.

With the last hope Iruka had on gaining ground in his fight against Kyuubi, his frustration had boiled to an all time high. The young Academy teacher had said some rather uncalled for things in their last argument and it had taken until now before he had the guts to apologize.

Seeing Ruito finish writing, Iruka cleared his throat to gain his colleague's attention. When Ruito's caught sight of Iruka his eyes seemed to light up a little and a small smile graced his face. "Glad to see you Iruka. I was afraid I had scared you off."

Iruka chuckled weakly and scratched the back of his head. "No, no. You didn't do that. I… I said some terrible things and I just… I just wanted to say I'm sorry. We might disagree, but that wasn't a good reason to…" He trailed off, not sure how to describe what he had done. _'Ranted, thrown a temper tantrum, called you everything under the sun and then some just because I wanted to let off some steam.' _They all seemed rather inadequate.

But Ruito didn't give him time to find what he was looking for. Instead he waved Iruka's apology off and stood up. "Don't worry Iruka. We've all had a long year. I knew you usually wouldn't have said anything." Ruito made his way over to Iruka and set a hand on his shoulder.

"I keep forgetting what you went through back then. I might have lost a few friends and mentors, but you lost your family as well. Emotions will always have a larger impact than anything logic can show. You'll just have to learn on your own just what Naruto is. I've decided that I'll help him if I can, but I won't be able to change the world. I'm sorry for trying to force my opinion on you."

Biting his lip from saying something that would ruin the apologies made, Iruka wondered if Kyuubi had caught on to his suspicions. Then he set it aside as the two teachers sat down and enjoyed a conversation that had nothing to do with Naruto, Kyuubi, or brainwashing.

-Scene Break-

Luck was with him as Naruto skid down the hall and flung open the teacher's office door. Ruito-sensei and Umino-sensei were both there.

"Ruito-sensei!" His teacher's head had snapped up at the violent opening of the door, but when Naruto yelled his name in a breathless, panicky way, Ruito-sensei was up and at his side before the blonde had time to blink.

"What's wrong Naruto?" The calm voice of his teacher helped his rushed thoughts come together. He took a moment to catch his breath before he poured out the story of being provoked by Kouga and the resulting fights. He left nothing out. This wasn't a time to worry about how much trouble he was in.

Ruito-sensei wasted no time when he was done. Umino-sensei was ordered to get a medic and take him to the site of the fight as soon as possible. Then his teacher picked Naruto up and dashed off to the site at top speeds. If it wasn't for the terrible situation they were in Naruto would have marveled at just how fast an Academy teacher could run while carrying something as heavy as himself. As it was, he hardly noticed.

When they arrived, 'kunai-thrower' was still by his fallen teammate's side and holding a bundled up shirt on the wound. A bloodied kunai was lying next to the unconscious Genin. Kouga was nowhere to be seen. Ruito-sensei wasted no time taking over emergency first-aid and Naruto could only stand and watch next to 'kunai-thrower' as their teacher checked over the bloodied boy.

Only a few moments later, Umino-sensei arrived with a medic-nin. The adults talked in what seemed like another language before the medic and Umino-sensei picked up the boy and headed off to the hospital. Ruito-sensei reassured them that the boy was going to be fine. It could have been fatal, but 'kunai-thrower' had done a good job of holding pressure to the wound.

"Now, with Nemu on his way to recovery I'd like to know just what happened here, Daimon. I've-" Whatever Ruito-sensei was going to say, it was interrupted by a new voice. A loud and angry voice filled with hatred that made Naruto's hair stand on end.

"I'll tell you what happened Ruito. You're 'harmless' monster almost killed my boy's teammate. That thing took those oh-so-handy lessons on how to kill and used them the way his bloodthirsty nature told him to. We've all seen how fast that thing improves. And Kouga's been telling me how violent the monster is when fighting. Now you can see it yourself! It should never have been left to live, let alone taught!" Naruto didn't want to turn around. He knew that voice and he didn't like it one bit.

"Goju! This is not the time! Bring up your own problems later. Whoever was at fault can be found out by questioning all the boys involved. Throwing around baseless accusations will not help matters in the least."

"Who needs to ask! I've already heard what happened from Kouga. That monster stabbed Nemu and I'm not going to wait until you and the Hokage find a loophole to get you're precious brat out of trouble!"

"You've only heard one version of events. A little more light on the situation might be shown by hearing what Daimon has to say." Ruito-sensei's voice was calm and steady with a hint of steel behind it. Goju didn't seem to care. He got right up into the brunette's face, waving his fist in a blatant threat.

"Are you calling my son a liar!" _'Kouga's Goju-teme's son?'_ Naruto thought in shock.

"No Goju. I'm only saying that we should listen to all the boys before we decided what to do." The calm statement didn't seem to work as the next moment the two Academy teachers were fighting with intensity Naruto had never seen before. The blonde had a moment to wish they weren't in such a secluded section of the city before his instincts screamed for him to move.

Kouga was following in his father's footsteps. While Kouga seemed fully recovered from Naruto's earlier low blow, the blonde was still in shock from all that had happened and had a hard time pulling his attention from his teacher's fight.

"Kouga! What are you doing?" Daimon had asked the exact question screaming in Naruto's mind. Just why was Kouga fighting him while his father was in a very high stake fight right in front of them.

"Shut up! Dad told me what I needed to do. If you're not going to help than just stay quiet and watch!" Kouga didn't waste any more time on Daimon but came straight for Naruto. The blonde sent a small thank you to whoever was listening that Daimon decided to stay out of it, but didn't have much time for anything else.

Kouga was holding a kunai in each hand, which meant Naruto could only block his kicks. Add in Kouga's high ability in taijutsu and Naruto's disorientation and the older boy was dominating the fight.

If it had been any other time Naruto might have marveled at how fast he was able to adapt. He only took a few hits at the beginning before he was dodging every strike. Unfortunately, all the blonde could think about was how he couldn't launch a single attack of his own.

He never realized that despite being pressed by Kouga he should have paid a little attention to where his teacher was fighting. As it was, the only warning he had was Ruito-sensei's yell before it was all over.

He was tackled into the ground and when he looked up, he wondered why Ruito-sensei was smiling. What was there to smile about when they were both fighting a couple of real bastards? The next thing that went through his mind was why Kouga-teme and Goju-teme hadn't attacked yet. Naruto couldn't move from where he was and Ruito-sensei didn't seem inclined to get back up anytime soon.

Then his teacher turned his head into his shoulder and coughed. The wet garbled sound of it chilled Naruto's spine. It was ten times worse than hearing Nemu's short semi-coughs earlier. When Ruito-sensei looked back at Naruto, his green vest where he had coughed at was stained with blood and a trickle of it was making its way down the corner of his teacher's mouth.

"Goju!" Naruto seriously wished it had been Ruito-sensei's voice. Dimly he realized it was Umino-sensei, but his attention was focused on his teacher who had yet to move and was still giving him a bloodstained smile. His nine-year old mind tried to process what happened. It was still working on that when Umino-sensei carefully rolled Ruito-sensei off the blonde.

A sword was sticking out of his teacher's back and Umino-sensei had to be careful how he held him. Naruto slowly sat up and stared at Ruito-senei, still wondering just what had happened. Umino-sensei seemed to wonder the same thing and asked his teacher in a chocked voice, "What happened Ruito?"

"Goju… He attacked me… Kouga fought Naruto… distracted him so Goju could… sneak behind… Saw the attack, but couldn't… had to save Naruto…" It was a valiant effort, but those same wet hacking coughs from earlier cut off Ruito-sensei's explanation.

"Hold on Ruito. Don't talk anymore. Help is on its way." Tears were coming down Umino-sensei's face. Naruto realized they were falling down his cheeks as well.

"No… Severed spine… no help for that…" Ruito-sensei seemed to gather up his strength as he turned to Naruto again. "Naruto… I'm sorry…" Naruto shook his head. After all what did Ruito-sensei have to be sorry about? It was all the blonde's fault. Ruito-sensei seemed to understand. "Not your fault… should have seen it… promise me…" Naruto was ready to promise anything as long as Ruito-sensei came out all right. It all seemed unreal.

"Goju's wrong… not a monster… don't believe… people like that… You're a good kid… but some…" Another wet coughing session, a little longer than the last two. "Some people won't see that… get stronger… surprise them all… grow up and prove… prove to them you're… Naruto Uzumaki…" He coughed again and it took some time afterwards before Ruito spoke again.

"Iruka… don't let hate… blind you… You've got… a good heart…" That short sentence seemed to take the last of his strength as he gave his longest cough yet. His front was stained with blood, and the last few times he had talked his voice had a wet quality that struck Naruto as utterly wrong.

The blonde chanted over and over and over again, praying for something to happen to make this nightmare go away. As Ruito-sensei looked at him once more, the small smile came back to his bloodied lips. "Hey… don't look like that…" Another coughing spell. "Smile Naruto… always liked… your… smile…" And the light in his eyes seemed to die as Ruito-sensei's head dropped limp in Umino-sensei's arms.


	6. Chapter Six

CHAPTER SIX

Iruka didn't believe it, couldn't believe it. With a shaking hand he reached up and took Ruito's pulse.

Nothing.

He wanted to scream, rage, sob – or maybe a combination of all three. All that came out were silent tears. A cold numb sensation spread from his heart. The time from Ruito's death to the time he registered the hand on his shoulder was an eternity and an instant all in one.

"I'm sorry for your loss. Go take care of the boy. We'll handle the rest." Iruka stared at the ANBU he had brought back from the hospital before the words made sense. The medic-nin the ANBU must have fetched was checking Ruito's pulse. _'A little too late for that.'_

Iruka shook away the thoughts and looked around him. Two new ANBU were taking the bound ex-teacher and Genin off while the two traitors cursed. Kouga's last teammate was nowhere in sight. The only ones left were the dog-faced ANBU, the late medic-nin and the cold body of Ruito.

The ANBU pointed to a dark corner where two buildings met at an angle. Squinting, Iruka could make out the shadowed form of a young boy. He acknowledged the ANBU's order but made no move to follow it. When the medic-nin took Ruito from his arms to prepare the body for transport, he weakly protested. The ANBU held Iruka back until the medic-nin started to remove the sword from his friend's back. That was too much to take. Iruka turned away and moved towards the boy in the shadows. It wasn't until he was almost there that he realized just who 'the boy' was.

Kyuubi. Nine-tails. Naruto Uzumaki.

No one could fault him for freezing. Right in front of him was the blonde boy Ruito had defended. The one his friend was adamant was just a child, not a demon. For this boy his friend had died. This boy was the root of all his troubles and frustrations for the past year.

'This boy' also happened to look heartbroken. Naruto Uzumaki was staring at where Ruito's body was being prepared with large hollow eyes. Iruka had never noticed just how blue those eyes were.

Tears streaked down the blonde's face in rivers and snot was running into the boy's mouth. Silent sobs were shaking his frame, but Naruto didn't seem to be aware anything but his former teacher. Looking back, Iruka realized that the ANBU and medic-nin had already left with the body, but another glance confirmed that Naruto's gaze hadn't moved an inch.

'_He must be looking at the blood.'_ Ruito had died a messy death. A pool of blood was left behind. There was enough that a child could jump and splash in it like they did with large rain puddles. The image made Iruka shudder and turn away once more. Seeing Naruto wasn't much better. The boy was covered in blood. Looking down at himself, Iruka realized that his state of dress wasn't much better.

A choked sob brought him back to Naruto. The boy had curled up with his back against the joint walls and was sobbing into his knees. Iruka could feel his heart aching as he listened to the boy's grief. He tried to tell himself that this was the Kyuubi - that the monster deserved this pain for taking Ruito away from him.

The argument fell short at the sight of a broken boy. This was how he felt at the news of his parents' deaths. No one should have to feel that pain.

For several moments Iruka waged war within himself, emotions fighting emotions. Then he took the last few steps and scooped the blonde into his arms. Naruto's only response was to clutch at his Chuunin vest and bury his head into the fabric. Before he could change his mind Iruka took off towards the Hokage Tower. He couldn't help this child - this hybrid of demon and boy. But the Hokage cared for Naruto. The wise ninja would take the blonde off his hands. _'At least I hope he will.'_

-Scene Break-

Naruto jolted out of sleep, heart hammering in his cheat, eyes wide in panic. After a few deep breaths he realized he was safe in bed. The blonde calmed and lay back down. The pillow was soft and his mattress lump-free. It was perfect.

'_Wait a moment.'_ Opening one eye he peered around the room. His walls weren't tan. He didn't have a window with a nice view of the village. And his mattress was anything but lump-free. This wasn't his room.

Panic came back threefold. Thoughts were jumping around too much to make sense of anything. He didn't understand what was going on.

The mattress sunk in on one side and he glanced up to see the Hokage sitting next to him on the bed. Naruto had only seen the Hokage once before. _'I was in the hospital.'_ But this room wasn't like the hospital room. Glancing down he realized his arms were lightly bandaged. _'But they feel fine…'_

"Do you remember what happened Naruto?" The blonde jumped, not expecting the voice when he was thinking so much. He stared at the old man, trying to figure out what he meant. It wasn't as if he had hidden for a few days again. Naruto wouldn't do that. Even with the Academy out, if Naruto didn't show up for sword practice Ruito-sensei would-

'_No... No!'_ Ruito-sensei wouldn't die like that. His teacher was a terrific fighter! There was no way Goju-teme would be able to kill Ruito-sensei. That was just a really bad dream.

He must have run off to perfect his ninjutsu so he could convince Ruito-sensei to graduate him despite failing the exam. That had to be it. And then… and then he had… fallen down a cliff or something. And scratched up his arms and… and he had hit his head and was knocked out and a ninja watcher brought him to the Hokage because… because the ninja watchers had found out he practiced ninjutsu before he started the Academy and they were kicking him out! That's it! Naruto was being kicked out of the Ninja Academy and the Hokage was here to find out why Naruto didn't tell him about his ninja practice when they spoke last time and-

"Naruto!" The sharp command broke Naruto's thoughts and he was startled to find the Hokage's face right next to his own. He scooted back quickly to get some space and tried to explain why he hadn't told the Hokage about his practices. But nothing came out.

There was a big lump in his throat and the blonde couldn't seem to make it move. Breathing was difficult and Naruto realized he was crying and his nose was plugged up. He scrubbed the tears away and caught a line of snot before it could run into his mouth.

Shaking his head he tried once more to explain, but it didn't happen. A high-pitched whimper was the only noise that came out. Naruto shook his head harder as if it would shake away the lump and tears and _pain._ His heart was throbbing. He could feel his pulse in his head and someone was trying to rip his heart out, or squeeze it till it burst, or stab it to see how many time the knife would go in before there was nothing left.

Arms went around him and he tried to pull away. They didn't let him. The arms pulled him closer to a warm chest that was rumbling in time with a soothing voice he couldn't understand. He tried to shake his head harder, but was hindered by the soft robes his face was pressed in.

_'This isn't happening. I don't need to be hugged. Nothing happened. I'm just in trouble for practicing ninjutsu and I'm going back to First Elementary and Ruito-sensei will be okay and-'_

The soothing words were finally making sense, but he didn't want them to. The gentle voice of the Hokage was telling him everything would be okay, that he should let it out. Crying is a good thing sometimes. It helps. When an important person dies-

"No!" Anger lent him strength he didn't know he had. The Hokage's arms that wouldn't let him go went with the old man's body as he was shoved off the bed. The room spun and Naruto fell face first on the bed, clutching his stomach. Rage rushed through his body.

'_The Hokage is wrong! No one died. And crying doesn't help, it never helps!'_ Rage turned into hate. He hated Kouga-teme for being a bully. He hated Goju-teme for hating him. He hated the Hokage for lying to him. He hated Ruito-sensei for leaving him.

'_No. I don't hate Ruito-sensei! I can't hate Ruito-sensei! He's- He's an important person! He cared! He taught me-'_ Another wave of anger and hate smothered his thoughts. Short flashes of memory ran through his head.

He remembered the first time he scraped his knee and went to Kogeru-san to make it better. The orphanage caretaker had looked at him like Goju-teme did and told him that a monster doesn't need any help. When he started to cry harder Kogeru-san had slapped him hard enough to knock him into a wall and yelled at him to stop playing around - had yelled that a monster doesn't feel pain like good kids do.

He remember the first time he dropped a pot filled with hot water and rice and burned his legs so badly he screamed. The blonde had been slapped out of his shock and told to quit making such noise and clean up the mess he made. When he moved too slow Kogeru-san had yelled at him some more and told he wouldn't get any dinner for the trouble he caused.

He remembered the first time he was yelled at for trying to play with the other kids in the park. He had been so happy being away from the orphanage but it seemed this life was just as lonely. When he started to cry the other adults noticed him, but no one came to help. They glared at him and quickly got their own children and led them away from the park. The feeling of emptiness as he stared at the villager's backs was worse than anything Kogeru-san had ever done to him.

And then there was Mendo and his gang. They helped him, tried to be his friends. Naruto remembered the day he looked for Mendo to show him the cool rock he found. The older boy was being beat upon by a group of drunks. The blonde hid and watched, not knowing what to do, but knowing that Mendo wouldn't want Naruto to see him being beat. The parting words of one drunk as they left Mendo in a bruised heap made Naruto realize he could never have friends with the village kids.

"Keep hanging around that monster and we'll be back."

Naruto wanted to hurt those men. The ones that hurt Mendo. The ones that hurt him. The ones that showed him that he would never be normal. He wanted everyone to feel the same pain he felt. He wanted to them to lay in a bruise heap at his feet and know they had no power over him. He wanted to shed their blood like they had shed his. To make it run in rivers and pool in the street like Ruito-sen-

'_Ruito-sensei!'_ The pain of loss cut through the hate and rage. It flooded his system, leaving the blonde drained. He couldn't find the strength to move. Arms lifted him up and he felt the Hokage's soft robes on his face, but he didn't care anymore. Let the old man hold him. It didn't matter. Nothing mattered.

"Oh Naruto. Life has not treated you well. Such tragedy should never be felt by a child."

_'It doesn't matter. I'm not a child. I'm a monster.'_

"Fate has given you a hard hand to play with, but no matter what happens, you continue to go on. You have taken life's challenges and overcome them every time."

_'No. No more. I don't care anymore.'_

"Ruito saw that. He looked beyond what others said of you and saw the wonderful boy you are."

_'But he's gone now. He's gone and it's my fault.'_

"He cared for you Naruto. He watched you, taught you, and enjoyed seeing the potential you possess grow each day."

_'It didn't matter. What good am I if I couldn't save him.'_

"Despite the way you are treated you continue to smile each day. The pure drive and determination to be the best you can be gave him strength as well."

_'It didn't help. He still died.'_ Tears were falling again. He wanted them to stop.

"You will be a great ninja one day. That was what Ruito wanted. He wanted you to be happy."

_'I was happy with Ruito-sensei. I don't care about being a ninja. I want Ruito-sensei.'_

"I know that losing a loved one is hard, but know that he died protecting one he cared about. There is no better way to die."

'_He shouldn't have died. He shouldn't have cared. No one else did! Why?'_ He chocked back a sob, but still felt it tremor through his body.

"Shh. It's okay Naruto. Cry. Grieve. Let it out. Only then can you go on."

'_I don't want to go on! I want Ruito-sensei!'_ A sob broke through this time and he couldn't hold them back anymore. A hand rubbed his back and he found the strength to lift his arms and clutch at the Hokage's robe, burrowing his head deeper in its folds.

They stayed like that until the sobs grew quieter and the tears ran down to a trickle. The blonde asked the one question he still couldn't answer in a voice the Hokage had to strain to hear. "Why?"

The Hokage didn't answer for a moment, letting the question hang in the air. "Why did Ruito save you? Because he didn't want to see your life end just as you were learning what it was like to really live. You were important to him, and when something is important, a ninja will give everything to keep it safe."

"But why?" The question was more of a quiet plea than a true question.

"You are very special Naruto. Anyone who takes the time to look can see that."

Naruto jumped to the floor and glared defiantly at the Hokage - anger giving him strength once more. "But why did Ruito-sensei have to go? Why didn't someone save Ruito-sensei?"

The blonde's voice echoed off the walls. And the old man looked at him with sad eyes. "Sometimes, bad things happen to good people. We can only try our best to make sure such things never occur. When they do occur we have two choices: we can allow ourselves to be defeated by them or we can take our mistakes and learn from them.

Naruto shook his head. "That's not good enough. Ruito-sensei is dead! Dead! Why? Why did it have to happen? Why weren't you there? Aren't you suppose to protect everyone? Why!"

The Hokage knelt in front of the blonde and placed his hand on his shoulder. "Naruto. What happened to Ruito should have never happened. I thought with you being in Ninja Academy that the teachers would look out for you. I used the Chuunin that guarded you for other missions that desperately needed attention.

"I was wrong. I believed that my request to leave their hatred aside would be enough for the Academy teachers. I should have kept a better eye on the situation, and double-checked to make sure the teachers were following orders."

"Why?"

"I didn't think it would be necessary. I have trust in my people, but strong emotions can sometimes overwhelm the strongest ninjas. I knew that things would be rough at first, but ninjas are trained to look underneath the underneath. I believed they would do so without having to be asked."

"No! Why me? Why do they have to hate me so much? What did I ever do?" Naruto bowed his head and tried to see if the patterns in the wood grains would tell him the answer. No matter how often he asked, no one had been able to tell him just why everyone looked at him with such cold eyes. If he just knew what he had done to have made such hate and pain he'd be able to make it up somehow.

Another hug enveloped him. And for the first time he tentatively returned it. His arms wouldn't wrap all the way around but he held on tight, hoping that for once he would find an answer.

"If only I could tell you Naruto, but I cannot. Not yet. Just know that there is nothing you have ever done to deserve such pain. You are a good boy, and will grow up to be a strong ninja. One day, everyone will see it. One day, the name Naruto Uzumaki will be known throughout Konoha as a true hero. Ruito knew that as well."

The pain in his heart eased a little as he listened to the Hokage's words. _'Ruito-sensei.'_ Only now did he remember what his teacher had said. _"Goju's wrong… not a monster… don't believe… people like that… You're a good kid… but some… Some people won't see that… get stronger… surprise them all… grow up and prove… prove to them you're… Naruto Uzumaki…"_

The lingering anger and hate was pushed down as a burning resolve started to form deep in Naruto's heart. He stepped back and looked up at the Hokage. He looked tired and sad. This old man had cared for him as well. Though they had only met twice, the Hokage had helped him all his life. If it hadn't been for the ninja watchers, Naruto would still be playing pranks, all by himself. If it hadn't been for the Hokage, Naruto would have never gotten into the Ninja Academy, never met Ruito-sensei or Hitori-sempai.

"_To be Hokage is to be more than the strongest. A Hokage must look after all the people in the village. He must love each person in it and look after them. Oh, it isn't easy. But you learn to look past people's faults and see the good in them. Each person in this village has value. You just need to find it."_

The Hokage's words from their first meeting came back as he continued to study the Third's face. The Hokage was supposed to be the strongest ninja in the village. Naruto believed that. He looked at this old man who was tired and sad and trying so hard to make Naruto feel better. And he realized that this was also what the Hokage was. An old man. And everyone seemed to forget that.

Naruto's decision was made.

"Alright old man! You better enjoy the next few years for I'm going to be taking your job soon. Just you wait! You're looking at Naruto Uzumaki, the future Fifth Hokage of Konoha! Just wait and see! Everyone will acknowledge me and you'll have to sit back and sleep all day like all the other old farts do!"

The surprise on the Hokage's face was priceless. The old man's eyes got wide and his jaw dropped a little. He recovered quickly but it was enough to put a big shit-eating grin on Naruto's face. _'I'll show them Ruito-sensei! I'll surprise them all. They'll never know what hit them!'_

As he watched the Hokage trying to find something to say back to him, he could have sworn he saw Rutio-sensei grinning at him at the Hokage's side. As his teacher faded away, he heard the Chuunin's last words echo in his head. _"Smile Naruto… always liked… your… smile…"_

It made his impossibly wide grin wider. _'Always, Ruito-sensei. Always.'_

-Scene Break-

Iruka pinched the bridge of his nose and tried to wish his headache away. It was the first day back after the summer break and the kids were high strung. Fights and troubles had been breaking out all morning. He could tell this year was going to be a long one.

Currently his problem was Ino Yamanako bickering loudly with Sakura Haruno. Ino had never been in his class before and he was amazed with her lung capacity. The fact that Sakura was able to match her friend was still putting him in shock. Sakura had always been a quiet studious girl. He had never seen her raise her voice to anyone.

'_Enough is enough.'_ He clapped his hands to gather the class's attention and placed a calming hand on the two girls shoulders. "We're going to review the transformation technique today. You will transform yourself into Hokage-sama." A collective groan made its way through the classroom and Iruka held back a grin. Sometimes it paid to be a teacher.

He ran through the classroom attendance list and each person transformed with decent marks. Then he ran across a name he hadn't thought of for a while. "Naruto Uzumaki."

As the young blonde made his way to the front of the class, Iruka tried to figure out how he could have forgotten that the nine-tails was going to be in his class. It had been a little over a year since Ruito's death and the only time Iruka had ever seen Naruto was at a distance.

The Academy staff had a complete overhaul and the only ones now working were those that could be trusted to stay polite. Iruka had tried his best to avoid the situation entirely, but he had still caught pieces of conversation throughout the year.

He didn't excel in class as he had during Ruito's year. Mizuki had taken him into his class and could only report average skill in physical portion of class and terrible skill in academics. Iruka hadn't allowed himself to wonder what that was about.

Instead, Naruto was most well known for skipping classes and pulling pranks on teachers and students alike. Iruka and Mizuki had been the only two that had never been caught in one of the blonde's infamous prank traps. Iruka hadn't allowed himself to wonder what that was about either.

As always, classes were mixed a little at the beginning of each year to allow the students to know more of their fellow classmates. This year Iruka had kept four of his previous students, had gained three that he had in the first year, and had four more he had never taught before. Including Naruto Uzumaki.

"Henge!" He was brought out of his musing by the blonde's yell. A puff of smoke surrounded the boy and Iruka waited patiently to see how well Naruto had done. The rest of the class had only learned this skill near the end of last year. Naruto had learned it nearly eighteen months ago.

As the smoke cleared, Iruka could only stare in surprised horror. There was the Hokage, but he was ultra short with fish lips. Iruka slapped a palm against his face and tried to fight against the worsening headache. He glared at Naruto, wondering why the boy had failed so miserably.

The class laughed as Naruto returned to his original form. The blonde laughed as well and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. He waved a hand in front of himself as if to ward off Iruka's glare. "That was a joke! I did it on purpose."

Iruka continued to glare and pointed at the blonde to drive home the fact that he wasn't pleased. "Quit fooling around Naruto! This is your third year in the academy!" The blonde seemed taken aback at Iruka's abrupt tone. "Do it again, you fool!"

Imediately Naruto performed another henge. As the smoke cleared, Iruka looked down upon the same misshapen Hokage. "Are you doing that on…" Iruka trailed off when the deformed Hokage's eyes met his. There was a hint of blue in those supposedly brown eyes, silently pleading for something.

He didn't have time to figure it out when the class broke out in laughter once more. "Is this for real? You've been in the academy for three years, and you still can't transform properly?" Iruka resisted the urge to sigh for the umpteenth time today. Kiba Inuzuka was a good kid, but rather loud and obnoxious. Last year had been troublesome, but this was the year Kiba should be getting his dog partner. Iruka had hoped another teacher would have gotten him.

Naruto de-transformed and scowled at Kiba. "You all just watch I'm going to become the real Hokage one day!" The class just laughed harder.

"Are you stupid? You? Hokage?" Kiba's words made Naruto look at the floor. The class might have thought it was in shame or embarrassment, but Iruka was close enough to see the blonde grit his teeth and clench his fists. The blonde's entire body was shaking in suppressed tension. The class probably thought he was fighting against tears, but Iruka was wondering if he was going to have a real fight on his hands.

Just as he was about to step in, Naruto's body relaxed. Beneath the bowed head, Iruka noticed a sly grin form. The class's laughter was loud, but Iruka was close enough to make out the blonde's whispered words. "They'll definitely be surprised Ruito-sensei."

When the blonde looked up a cheesy grin was in place, looking like a complete idiot. But Iruka caught a glint of steel determination in the squinted fox eyes of his latest student. He leaned down for a closer look, but his movement caught Naruto's attention and in the next instant it was gone.

"Sorry about the Umino-sensei. Am I done?"

The class was still laughing, and Iruka realized that even if he asked Naruto to try again, the results would be the same. It didn't matter if Naruto knew the henge or not. The blonde wasn't going to perform it correctly. As he gazed into the blue eyes of his student he noticed that the determination wasn't completely gone. He could see it there beneath the cheerful exterior.

He remembered the last time he truly looked into this young boy's eyes. The pain and emptiness had overwhelmed him, causing him to wonder if a demon could truly feel such things. He had been ignoring the conflict for over a year, not wishing to dredge up old feelings and memories of Ruito when the pain was still fresh.

But he had finished grieving a while ago, and Ruito's memory wasn't painful to reflect upon. Iruka still wasn't sure if this was the nine-tails or Naruto Uzumaki, but for Ruito, his lost friend, he was willing to try and find the right answer.

"Umino-sensei?" Naruto looked confused and Iruka realized he had been lost in thought long enough for the laughing to quiet a little. He gave one last look at the blonde before deciding.

"Call me Iruka-sensei, Naruto." Iruka smiled at the surprised look on Naruto's face. Naruto would be the first to call him by his first name as a teacher. Only teachers that had a one-on-one teaching relationship were called by their first name. General academy classes weren't on the same level as private tutoring or Genin training. But this seemed right. Ruito had seen something in this boy and the best way to find that would be to treat Naruto as Ruito had. _'I'll try and see what you saw Ruito. I won't let the hate blind me to whatever the truth may be.'_

Author's Note: Yes, this particular story is complete. There will be no further updates. Many have requested a sequel and I do have some ideas, but I don't have any concrete plans to actually do one. Trial and Error was ment to be a prequel to the Cannon verse, nothing more. Still, I have started on a re-write of Trial and Error that would help make way for a future sequel.


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